Fated to You

Chapter 5: Six years later

She sits near the window and overlooks the small landscape below her airplane slowly appearing behind the receding clouds as the plane descends. She’s finally in Texas, and it has been years since the last time that she’s even been there. The farms that seem so small from up above in her window and the huge buildings were now the smallest specters to the eyes nonetheless the familiar territory gave her a sense of warmth and she couldn’t wait to get back unto motherland.

She lets out a small sigh and looks upfront to find the Cabin Crew Chief grabbing a phone and starts announcing, “Folks, we have just begun our descent into Dallas Airport; the local time is three thirty; light winds out of the south and we’re looking for a – on time arrival today. We should be on the ground in twenty minutes.” She places the phone back and walks over to the cabin.

Freen leans her head back against the window and sighs once more in nostalgia remembering the last time she had been in Texas and not far away on unfamiliar territory though which she misses now greatly. Her parents stayed behind having already accustomed to the cultures and ways of France and decided to settle there. France has been a long way out of America and she had enjoyed every bit and places of it. It was easy for them to settle in a hotel first and then having to find a school that Freen could start as soon as she gets there to study the language. They found a place in a small apartment in Paris and Freen had been able to find a job almost immediately as an English translator for businessmen. Freen is a fast learner so the language now comes out of her mouth as easy as she can sings out the English alphabet.

“Nice weather isn’t it?”

Freen tilts her heads towards the woman next to her, “Excuse me?”

She smiles, “I say that it is a nice weather.”

“Yes, it sure is.” Freen simply answers; believe it or not she was not in the mood for small talk.

“Are you here on visit?” The woman asks her; curious to know where she had come from.

“No, I’m here to stay. I have a job offer.” She replies.

The woman starts running her seatbelt around her waist as she utters a simple, “Oh.” She then turns her head in Freen’s direction, “Have you been in France for long?”

“Yes actually…I was there for six years, studying and working too.” Freen answers then mockingly raised her eyebrow in annoyance at the woman’s enquiries, “I’m sorry but you ask a lot of questions for a stranger.”

She chuckles lightly, her rooted nose crinkling up and the side of her eyes lines up in frown as the curve of her smile uplifts her cheeks, “I’m a cop. I’m sorry.  I forget sometimes when I’m off-duty and I ask questions to strangers. It only happens when I am around pretty women though. I’m just curious to know about you.”

Freen shifts in her seat uncomfortably, “Well, detective, you could have at least had the decency to ask me for my name first and the nice small talk could have gone from there.”

“Forgive me my rudeness.” She extends her hand for Freen to grab, “I’m Sam Tucker. And you are…?”

Freen takes her hand and squeezes it lightly, “I’m Freen Chankimha. Nice to meet you.”

“The pleasure is all mine. You have a nice name.” Sam answers, holding Freen’s hand way longer than she should have.

Her eyes were a light gray that Freen found extremely seductive in a way that brought this warm fuzzy pain inside of her stomach. She forcefully detaches her stare away from them and releases Sam’s hand almost too quickly. “Thank you.” Freen hadn’t felt that tingly feeling since... She’s not even going to go there.