Green Eyed Daydream #Wattys2016

Chapter 62

Tyler's POV

I'm standing at the "Arrivals" gate at SFO, looking at the monitor for when Carrie's flight is supposed to land. She doesn't know I'm coming to pick her up, but I just couldn't wait to see her. It's probably kind of pathetic, but going even a couple of days without actually being able to touch her and see her has me climbing the walls.

We usually text and call everyday, but since she's been in Boston on this business trip, our communication has been kind of spotty. She didn't pick up the phone again when I called her this morning, but I figured she's probably in a meeting, and busy.

Finally, I see that her plane has docked, and people are starting to emerge from the arrivals hall.

I hope she doesn't think it's too cheesy, but I picked up a dozen long stemmed roses for her. And so, here I am, standing with a bouquet in hand, and a stupid smile on my face, watching as she comes down the hall, rolling her little luggage bag, wearing a Red Sox baseball cap, and looking fucking adorable.

She hasn't noticed me yet, and just as I'm about to call out her name, I see Lucas come up behind her, and swipe the hat off her head. He says something to her, and puts it on his head. What the fuck?

Carrie laughs, and tries to reach for it, but he dodges her, and then just makes a run for it. She actually starts to chase him down the corridor, but the wheels of her luggage get twisted, and she has to stop. When she adjusts her bag, she takes out her phone, and it looks like she's texting, as she's walking toward the exit. She comes out, and walks right past me without looking up, her eyes glued to the screen in her hands.

"Come on, slow poke!" Lucas calls out to her from around the corner, and she looks up, and runs toward him.

"Carrie!" I yell after her, and she turns around. When her eyes finally land on me, she looks... confused.

"Tyler? What are you doing here?"

I come up to her, and give her a kiss on the cheek, ignoring Lucas, who's giving me the stink eye. "Yeah, it's so weird running into you like this. I mean, I just come the airport sometimes to hang out, you know, for fun."

"Really?" she looks at me like I've lost my damn mind.

"No, you loon. I'm here to pick you up!"

"Oh, well I wasn't expecting you to..."

"I know, I thought I'd surprise you," I say, but she just stares at me. What the hell? Am I missing something here?

"And here, these are for you," I tell her, and awkwardly present her with the bouquet.

She looks a little uncomfortable, but accepts the pink roses, like she's doing me a big fucking favor.

"Look, if you don't like them, you can just toss them in the garbage," I tell her, getting a little annoyed at her lackadaisical reaction.

"No, I do, I'm just tired from the flight," she explains.

"I guess, I'll be going. See you later, Mav," Lucas says, and takes off.

"Mav? The fuck is that about? And aren't you going to ask for your hat back?" I ask.

"Mav is just short for Maverick, it's kind of an inside joke. And the hat is actually his. I took it from him when he fell asleep on the plane...I mean, he lent it to me in Boston, when we went sightseeing, but then we made this bet about--"

"Yeah, yeah, okay, I get it," I interrupt her. The last thing I want to hear about is how much fucking bonding time she's been spending with Lucas. "Sounds like you had a pretty productive work trip," I roll my eyes.

She puts her hands on her hips, and squints at me. "Yeah, actually. I landed my first client, and I'm pretty damn proud of myself."

"Wow, well, that's awesome, babe! I knew you could do it," I tell her, and pat her shoulder.

She shrugs off my hand. "I'm just so exhausted..." she whines, dragging her feet, as we begin to walk.

I know I should bite my tongue, but I just can't help myself. "You sure seemed pretty energized a minute ago, chasing what's his face around," I say, and take her bag from her, carrying it by the handle, and walking toward the parking garage.

She catches up to me, and grabs me by the arm.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" she asks, sounding pissed off.

"It means, that I come to the airport, flowers in hand, no less, to surprise my girlfriend, and you seem more annoyed than pleased. With me, that is. But when it comes to fucking Lucas, you're all smiles."

"I can't believe we're back to this," she says, folding her arms defensively. "Tyler, seriously, you have a problem. I told you before, Lucas and I are just friends, so you need to leave it alone, before you ruin things again. And yeah, I wasn't planning on seeing you this minute. I was going to take Uber, and go home, take a shower and relax. Sorry if I'm not in an immediate 'date' mode after spending six hours on a plane."

"I am not expecting some passionate greeting from you, but at least appearing like you give two shits would've been nice. I mean, clearly you don't feel the same way, but I've missed the hell out of you. I mean, sorry if the flowers are a little much...or cliche, or whatever, I just wanted to make you happy...not put pressure on you."

She let's out a sigh, then brings the bouquet to her nose, inhaling the scent. "I'm sorry. The flowers are beautiful. You coming to pick me up is thoughtful. It was just unexpected."

I wrap my arm around her waist and pull her closer to me. It's taking all my power to say this, but I force myself anyway. "And I'm sorry for giving you shit about Lucas. I know you're just friends. I'm gonna be better about being less...um...you know."

"Good," she says, and cracks a smile. "I did miss you, Tyler," she tells me, and I finally feel at peace.