Waves

CHAPTER 01

NORA

Nora awoke to a flight attendant shaking her shoulder.

"Whaa?" She asked, sitting up slightly and turning her head.

"We're landing, you need to put your seat belt on," The woman said in a kind tone, before moving onto the next person.

Nora grabbed the belt and snapped it wordlessly across her body. She had an aisle seat, so she should be able to get out of the plane pretty fast, which was lucky. Quickly, she stole a glance out of the window, and looked outside to see a massive city looming in the distance. Her stomach clenched slightly. It was her first time out of the country, and she was all alone until she could find Michael in the airport. Or should she call him Mr. Jenkinson?

Anyway, until she could find Mr. Jenkinson in the airport.

The flight attendant announced again that the plane was landing, and Nora turned back to the front. She gripped the armrests tightly as the aircraft shuddered slightly. But the wheels soon touched the ground and nothing went awry, much to Nora's relief.

Nora grabbed her bag from the overhead stash and stumbled off the plane. She clutched the worn fabric between her hands like a lifeline, suddenly realizing just how vulnerable she was. If somebody stole her things, Nora would never be able to find Mr. Jenkinson, and she wouldn't have her visa to show the Australian security, either.

Behind the public gate, Nora spotted a man with spiky black hair sticking straight up everywhere. He had a day or so of stubble on his cheeks, but apart from that he looked spry. He was wearing a bright blue long-sleeved shirt with black undersides that said something like Waverly Council Lifeguard.

Nora wasn't sure why this man stood out to her so much, but she had a gut feeling that he might be Mr. Jenkinson. She watched as he turned to another man beside him, this one much taller with a neck like a giraffe and a head of curly blonde hair and the same long-sleeved shirt. He looked kind. Actually, they both did. Nora found herself hoping that one of them would be the mysterious Mr. Jenkinson.

Just then, the man Nora had been watching looked up and locked eyes with her. His expression lit up.

"Nora Kane?" He shouted through the hustle and bustle. Nora couldn't hardly hear him, but she could lip read what he said.

Nora gave the man a wave and a thumbs up to show she'd heard him, and then turned her attention to the flood of adults still streaming from the plane. Somehow, she'd have to find a way to get through them to the other side.

Sometimes, Nora's small size could be quite a hindrance in crowds such as the one she was currently in. Being undersized and borderline tiny, she was shoved along with the flow of people pretty easily. But other times, her size could come in handy. Nora held her bag closer to her chest and shimmied around the adults with practiced ease. She reached the other side in less than a minute.

"Nora Kane?" The black haired man asked again.

"Uh, yeah, that's me. Are you Mr. Jenkinson?" Nora replied politely.

At her words, the two men both burst into laughter. Mr. Jenkinson looked extremely taken aback as he struggled to compose himself. "Everyone calls me Mouse. Mr. Jenkinson makes me sound like an old man," He told me around his chuckles.

Nora couldn't help but smile along, too. Mouse was such a vastly different name than Mr. Jenkinson, and she wondered how exactly he had earned the title. It would surely be an interesting story.

"It's nice to meet you," Nora extended her hand and the two shook.

"Goodness gracious you have a strong grip, kid," Mouse said, shaking his hand out.