Firsts

First Plane Trip

My stomach drops when Julia and I walk into the airport. My dad smiles merrily, helping us carry our things to the check in desk. We hand over our tickets and prepare to deal with the hassle of airport security. Baggage check isn't terrible, and soon we're sitting outside the food court, eating breakfast from some fast food restaurant.

The waiting lounge isn't as bad as I thought it would be. Julia and I laugh and talk and even do a little shopping. Then, it's time to get onto the plane. As I stand in line, I see it from outside the window. The plane is huge! It's wingspan has to be at least 150 feet across. I gulp and tense up. I'm going to get on that giant, white machine and try to defy gravity along with about a hundred other people.

I try not to panic as we board the plane, but I can't stop the shaking in my hands. Julia smiles at me. I give her a weak smile back, but it ends up looking more like a grimace. The line begins to get shorter, and soon we're at the front. I nervously force my feet onto what I'm sure is a commercial death trap. 

Fortunately, I end up with a window seat. The plane moves down the runway, slowly at first, then faster, faster, faster- Suddenly, we're off the ground. My breath hitches, and I'm close to a panic attack. Julia glances nervously over at me and begins to hum. At first, I'm confused, but then, I realize that the song she's humming is Defying Gravity, from the Wicked showcase. 

I smile a little, thinking about the lyrics of the song, beginning to sing along, my volume like the takeoff of the plane, very softly at first, then louder, louder, louder. Soon, I'm full on belting the lyrics. Everyone is staring, some people are clapping along, and Julia is singing the Glinda parts whenever they came up. When I finish the song, the whole plane erupts into applause. A few people cry for an encore, and soon everyone is chanting for us to sing something else. I grin, forgetting that I'm five miles above the ground. 

As it turns out, flying isn't that bad. As long as you don't look down too often, it's not very different from being on a bus. However, the food's disgusting, which makes me glad Julia and I packed a bag filled to the brim with unhealthy snacks. I quickly demolish a bag of M and Ms. 

We don't perform anymore after our initial outburst into song, but many people compliment us, and a few even ask if we're going to New York to check out a performing arts school, to which we reply that, yes, as a matter of fact, we are, and they grin broadly and wish us luck. All of the people on our flight are very nice. Unfortunately, Julia tells me that's not always the case. She says she's been on a few flights with some particularly nasty passengers, including an old man who wouldn't let her out of her seat to use the bathroom and a little kid who continuously kicked the back of her seat, which I only believed happened in movies. 

When our plane touches down, it's only two o'clock. We scurry off, smiling merrily and wondering what we should do on our first night in New York City. However, after an hour waiting in line at baggage claim, our optimism begins to fade. 

"I'm tired!" Julia complains, taking another bite of her Cinnabon. "Do you think my bag got lost?" 

"It's only three o'clock," I respond, trying to stay cheery. "I'm sure it will turn up soon." 

She sighs, but a few minutes later squeals in delight as her bright pink suitcase appears at last, tossing her leftover cinnamon roll in the trash. I grab my duffle bag and sling it over my shoulder. We go through security check after security check, but we refuse to let our spirits be dampened again by airport madness. Half an hour later, we are finally standing outside. Julia looks around and beams, running to the edge of the sidewalk. 

"Taxi!" she hollers. She turns back to me and adds, "I've always wanted to do that."

I shake my head, grinning at her as I stroll forward towards the small, yellow taxi that has stopped in front of her. Ashton's betrayal is long forgotten when we climb into the backseat, ready to take on the Big Apple.