When Michael's plane landed, he stood outside the gates for a moment, gathering his bearings.
The last time he had seen his aunt-or great aunt, really, had been when he was just eight years old. Though he had seen pictures of her since then and had a pretty defined idea of what she looked like, his memory of her personality was comparatively vague. Her name, Suzanne, made him taste butterscotch cookies and chocolate milk, which he took as a good sign.
He took a step forward, and then another, realizing that he was the furthest he had ever been away from home.
He soon caught sight of a woman he recognized to be his aunt sitting at a table a few feet away. She was a rotund woman with straw coloured hair that reached to about her shoulders. Her face was a little more creased with age, but otherwise she looked exactly as Michaels memory suggested she should.
He hesitantly approached her, and when he was within her earshot he cleared his throat, hoping to catch her attention. Apparently the crowded airport was too noisy for one clearing of the throat to make much difference, so he tried again.
"Hi."
She looked up, and instead of the flicker of recognition that Michael had expected to cross her face, one of confusion filled her dark green eyes. "Can I help you?"
"Um..." Michael's brow furrowed. "It's me...Michael."
Her eyes widened. "Michael?"
"Uh...yeah?" Michael couldn't explain why his voice sounded so unsure.
"Oh my goodness, you look so much different!" She stood, the corners of her mouth turning up into a wide smile. "You're so tall!" She enveloped him into a tight, lavender smelling hug.
When she released him, she smiled again. "You're going to like it here, I think. Your mother tells me you're very quiet and introverted, and if that's true then my place is the perfect habitat for you."
Michael was slightly comforted by this notion, although not much of the emotion could make it past the wall of pain that surrounded his heart.
"Now come on, let's get going," Suzanne continued, turning towards the escalator. "It's a bit of a long drive, and there's a lot of people I want you to meet."
Even though she had just contradicted her previous comforting statement, Michael followed her gladly. His nerves were frayed after such a long flight and he was beginning to feel suffocated by all the people around. He couldn't wait to get out of that place. He followed Suzanne through the seemingly endless maze that made up the airport until they exited a huge set of automatic doors and stepped out into an expansive parking lot. Michael took a long anticipated breath of fresh air. It smelled like exhaust and fumes from the large city that surrounded them, but after that long airplane ride, Michael savoured it like a bite of the most delectable food on the planet.
They reached Suzanne's car and, after loading Michael's luggage into the trunk, they climbed in and pulled out of the parking lot.
As they drove, Suzanne babbled on about this and that, not leaving room for Michael to get a word in edgewise. Another person may have been annoyed by this, but Michael liked the constant noise. He had never been the best conversationalist and he preferred to stare out the window anyway.
He watched as, after a while, the loud looking city gave way to a countryside filled with forests and fields. Cows peacefully grazed with their calves and Michael even spotted a small field of sheep as they zipped by.
Michael was so mesmerized by the unfamiliar natural surroundings that Suzanne could have asked him several questions by then and he would be completely oblivious.
And Michael, after such a long flight and so many sleepless nights, felt his eyelids grow heavier than he could handle. Before he knew it, his head was leaning against the window and he was sliding out of consciousness.
Michael had never been one to fall asleep easily or unexpectedly in moving vehicles or unfamiliar places, but nonetheless, he drifted off to into a deep, peaceful sleep.
Ugh this chapter is terrible. I'm so sorry *cries*.
Anyway, please comment your thoughts about this book because I would really love to know what you guys think and I promise I will respond to you because I'm just that fab.
Thanks!
Loser_Luke
