Living Next Door to 1D

Chapter 29

*last chapter of the book :,) it's been a ride y'all <3 thank you for every comment, the support is more than you can imagine :D

however, i'm not done writing! new stories coming soon y'all, and i'll try to be consistent this time!*

So... Steve and I held hands. How on earth did that come about?

*flashback sound*

As I step onto the airplane, the crew greets us and, checking our tickets, point us down our respective aisles. I find my seat (I got the window seat this time!), and Steve comes up behind me, helping me stow my carryon up top. We get settled in and I pull out my headphones, but don't turn them on yet. You know what they say about Bluetooth and airplanes!

Steve sits in the middle seat next to me and pulls out a book from his backpack. I briefly see the title before he opens it, it's Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I read the book a couple of times (goodness, that writing style is hard to understand though!) and I love the movie. I would've downloaded the movie for the plane if I'd thought of it, honestly.

Thirty minutes later, the plane finally starts taxiing, Steve puts his book down and holds on to his armrests. Nobody has sat in the aisle seat and I find it strange that he didn't sit in it after the doors closed. I look out the window as the aircraft prepares to take off, leaning as close to the glass as I can. I love takeoff. Once you can control the queasy feeling in your stomach, which I learned to do a long time ago, it's so much fun.

As we start gaining speed I lean back into my chair and put my arm on my rest, still looking out as the ground falls away when someone grabs my arm. I turn quickly and Steve is pressed against his seat, hand on my forearm, eyes squeezed closed. He's terrified. As the plane starts flying even faster, we're pressed against our seats because of the G's, and he clutches my arm even harder.

I manage to get his hand off my arm (like it or not, he's hurting me!) and hold it instead, not realizing what I'm doing. The plane tilts higher and Steve doesn't let go. It doesn't look like he's breathing either, and I lean close and whisper to him "breathe, it's okay." He nods tightly and lets out a little breath.

After what feels like hours, the plane levels out and he slowly relaxes. I see the ocean below us but know better than to tell Steve. I extricate my hand from his to take a photo but as I look out the window, I feel him take it again.

Turning, I notice his eyes are still closed, but his head is turned towards me. "Just for a minute," he whispers, and I nod, even though he can't see me. I turn back to the window, admiring the sparkling ocean below us. I find my phone on my lap and manage to take a few photos with only one hand. I accidentally switch to the front camera and prepare to take a photo of the two of us when I realize what I'm doing. I promise, that was reflex and not on purpose. Well, I might as well. I take a couple quick photos of me and Steve, and our joined hands, then sit back in my seat to enjoy the flight. I don't even consider putting on my headphones, I don't even think about them.

I'm tired. I've barely slept the last couple days. As I get more comfortable in my chair, my head rolls to the side and lands on something soft, yet firm. Good enough for a pillow I suppose.

When I wake up, I'm not holding Steve's hand anymore. Where did he go? I hope he didn't leave me alone, he's good company. I try to sit up, but there's a heavyweight on my side, and I can't. I open my eyes and find myself lying across Steve's chest, with his right arm around me. Two answers there: why he's not holding my hand, and what the heavyweight was. I look up and see that he's still asleep, so I carefully rearrange myself to be more comfortable. The captain makes an announcement at that moment, saying we're preparing to land and will be in Barcelona in 15 minutes. Mentally I make a list of everything I need to do before landing: get my headphones into my backpack, make sure I know where my phone is, wake Steve and tell him we're about to land... let's start there.