The Smile Always Fades

20. Number Denied

"So where are you headed?"

Anna looked up from her sketchbook. She had been completely consumed with the shading and detail of her picture that she had totally forgotten about this beautiful creature with the "Built Ford Tough" body--aka: Steven.

"Oh, um..." Anna set her drawing pad on the little tray that was attached to the seat in front of her, right next to her cup of orange juice and bag of pretzels. Ahh, the perks to flying. "I'm on my way to New York City."

"City of Bright Lights and Big Dreams, huh? You running away from home to hit the big time?" Steven laughed.

"Nope," Anna said simply. "Just...visiting a friend."

"How's a girl from Oregon make a friend in New York City? You guys been pen pals or something? Meet on Facebook and just have to see each other in real life?"

Anna furrowed her brow at all of the weird things that just came out of this guy's mouth. Maybe Jordan was right--watch out for the creeps. "Uh, no. We've known--wait, how did you know I was from Oregon?"

"It's not that hard to tell," Steven said matter of factly. "You all look and dress alike."

"We...no we don't!"

Steven laughed.

"Oregon is not some state filled with hippies who frolic through flowers and live in trees!" Anna said defensively, trying to break the stereotype of her home. She sat there for a moment thinking of what she'd just said. "Okay, maybe there are people like that, but there's only a few, and I'm certainly not one of them!"

"Okay, okay," Steven said playfully. "I was joking."

"Oh..." Whoops. "Well, good."

Steven looked into Anna's deep blue eyes and smiled. "You're not too bad," he said, flirtatiously shoving her shoulder.

Anna smiled and self consciously looked at her hands sitting in her lap. "So where are you off to?" she asked, attempting to change the subject.

"Home," Steven answered. "I live in Manhattan."

"Nice, so why were you visiting Oregon?"

"I thought it might be fun to become a hippie; frolic through the flowers and live in a tree, but after a few weeks, I decided that kind of lifestyle wasn't for me."

Anna looked at him with wide eyes and a gaping mouth, but once he winked at her and flashed his porcelain white smile, she punched his arm--hard.

"Ow! Sheesh, I was only kidding," he said in a pretend whine. "You pack a pretty hard punch."

"Thank you," she said with a full smile on her face. Why had she been nervous about this plane ride? Anna couldn't even remember, she was having a pretty good time. "So what's the real reason?" she asked in a serious tone.

"Oh, uh...my aunt," he began solemnly. "She passed away not too long ago and we were attending her funeral."

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bring up something so personal," Anna said guiltily.

"No, it's not your fault," Steven dismissed. "You didn't know."

An awkward silence passed, but soon Anna thought of something to ask. "So why isn't the rest of your family on this flight?"

"My dad didn't come, he had business to attend to," he answered. "And my mom is staying in Portland to be with her family for a while longer--it was her sister who died."

"I'm sorry for your loss."

"It's okay, I didn't really know her that well anyway. She did live on the other side of the country, let's not forget."