Chance Upon A Tempest

Chapter 19

The flight lands at LAX airport about half an hour earlier than scheduled. You feel absolutely exhausted from the flight. You feel as though you were holding your breath the entire time. As soon as you disembark the plane, you and Jimin head for the baggage claim for your bags. While waiting for the conveyor belt to start bringing out everyone's luggage, you take the opportunity to text Owen.

You:
Owen, I hope it's not too late over there.
I just landed. We got here about 30 minutes ahead of schedule.
Just waiting for my bag.
I have so much to tell you.
The flight was a disaster.
Well, the airplane ride itself was fine, it's the fellow passenger that was the stressor.
I miss you terribly.
Love you, bestie.

Owen:
It's a little after 11:00 PM here.
Oh... no. What happened, Darlin?
Are you okay?
Fuck. I wish I was there with you.
When you get into the hotel room, text me.
We can facetime and you can tell me what happened.

You:
No, Owen.
I don't want you staying up too late.
You have to go to work in the morning.
I can talk to you tomorrow.
I'm okay now.
I wish you were here too.
Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I got here in one piece.
Go to sleep, Gorgeous.
I'll text you in the morning.
I love you.

Owen:
I love you too, Darlin.
Call or text me any time.
I can sleep when you get back.
I am feeling really needy for you though, Baby girl.
God... the next few days are going to fucking suck.
Talk to you tomorrow, love.

When you are done texting Owen, you put your phone in your purse and see that Jimin is texting someone of his own. You imagine that the recipient of his message is Piper. He sends his message and puts his phone in the back pocket of his Jeans. Then you hear your phone buzzing again. You think, "Hmm... Is it Owen again?"

When you pull your phone back out of your bag, you see that it isn't Owen, but rather, your traveling companion.

Jimin:
I want to see you in your room when we get back to the hotel.
I want to talk to you about all of this, once and for all.
No more just limping along.
Please, Kitten, I'm asking you to talk.
Nothing else.

Feeling silly texting him when he is literally standing right next to you, you turn to Jimin and say, "Okay, but I'm really hungry at this point. I need sustenance."

He turns and looks down onto your face. Jimin places his cupped hand under your chin and says, "Then I'm going to feed my sweet Kitten. Okay?"

Blushing, you nod your head and avert your gaze. He doesn't let go of your face, but instead tries to catch your eyes. When you don't cooperate, he whispers, "Look at me Kitten. Please. Just look at me."

You look up at him through your lashes and he says, "That's my good Kitten."

He slowly leans closer to you, getting very close. You think he might kiss you, but then he stops, closes his eyes, lets go of your chin, and straightens up.

The conveyer belt on the luggage claim suddenly comes alive and you can see people's bags starting to appear through the plastic curtains. After a few minutes of waiting, you see your bag coming up and step up to the conveyer belt to pick it up. But before you can, he grabs you by your waist, moves you aside and picks up the bag himself. His own bag comes up behind a couple of others and he grabs it as well. With both luggage claimed, he takes a luggage cart and loads the two bags. Then Jimin says, "I need you to hold onto my arm. I don't want to lose you in the airport. C'mon Kitten." With that Jimin pushes the cart towards the terminal exit.