looking for forever

chapter no.15

plane rides and perfect passengers

"Flight 27B to Cancún, Mexico, please line up to board. Flight 27B to Cancún, Mexico, thank you." The perky loudspeaker lady announced. Sierra and Kelly gasped, grabbing their Starbucks drinks and rushing away from the counter to find Sierra's family. They hauled their suitcases as fast as they could down the airport until they spotted two incredibly tall men. They rushed to their sides and tried to catch their breath.

"Thank God you two are tall." Kelly said, breathing heavily.

"Or else we never would've found you guys." Sierra finished Kelly's thought, wheezing. They all boarded the plane and took our seats. Sierra and Kelly sat a row ahead of Andrew and Mr. and Mrs. Williams. Kelly sat in the middle seat because Sierra had called the window seat an hour earlier. Kelly was on my phone, texting Amber and her parents, when someone tapped her shoulder.

Kelly looked over to see an attractive guy, around her age by the looks of him, smiling at her.

"Mind if I sit here?" He asked politely. Kelly shook her head and gestured for him to sit. He gave her a grateful smile and took a seat.

"I'm Asher." He held out his hand, Kelly shook it with her own, noting the extreme size difference.

"Kelly." Kelly smiled. Sierra stuck her head out from behind Kelly.

"I'm Sierra, official best friend and protecter of this one." Sierra said, gesturing to Kelly. Asher laughed and shook her hand.

"Pleasure to meet you, bodyguard." Asher grinned, his comment causing both Kelly and Sierra to laugh. Before any of them could say anything else they were interrupted by the loudspeaker.

"Folks, this is your captain speaking, we will be taking off in a few short minutes so buckle up your seat belts and have a great flight." The pilot said in somewhat of a southern accent. All of the passengers obeyed, their metal pieces clicking into place.

Kelly glanced at Sierra, who was popping some white pills, sleep medicine, and looking quite nervous. Sierra had always had a problem with planes, no one knew why, not even Kelly. Almost immediately, Sierra's eyes fluttered closed and she began to snore just as the plane started to move. Kelly had always gotten a bit nervous when flying but not nearly as much as Sierra did, so Kelly tried to contain herself for her best friend, even if she was asleep.

The plan started moving faster and faster until it was at top speed, zooming down the runway. Suddenly, the wheels of the plane left the earth with a jolt, and Kelly's hand sprung down and grabbed Asher's. Asher looked down at their hands for a second but didn't seem bothered by the sudden notion. Kelly, on the other hand, didn't notice at all.

__________

After twenty minutes of ascending the plane finally leveled out and the seat belt command was released. Kelly finally noticed that her hand had been inside of Asher's the entire ascent. She glanced back at Andrew, who was fast asleep. She yanked her hand away from Asher's and flashed him an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean any–" Before Kelly could finish, Asher started to laugh.

"It's okay, you were just scared. My little sister asks me to hold her hand all the time when she gets scared." Asher explains. Kelly couldn't help but notice that he was extremely cute with his brown hair pulled back into a black beanie. Kelly also appreciated that he was acting very relaxed about this whole thing. Kelly smiled at him.

"So what brings you to Mexico?" Kelly asks him, full of interest.

"I'm going on vacation with my best bud. He's already at the hotel." Asher explains.

"What hotel are you staying at?" Kelly asks him. Asher shrugs and adjusts his beanie.

"He never told me. Said he'd send someone to pick me up when I got to the airport." Asher said, sounding like he didn't mind being kept in the dark. Everything about the attractive brunette seemed to radiate relaxation and chill. Kelly just nodded, not really knowing how to respond. "So why are you going to Cancún?" Asher asks, looking at Kelly.

"Vacation with my best friend and her family, minus her little brother." Kelly explained. Little Zach had chosen to stay with his Gramma instead of visiting a tropical paradise, why none of them knew, but he did.

"This her family?" Asher asks, looking behind at the people in the row behind us. Mrs. Williams was reading a book with earplugs in, Andrew was still fast asleep, and Mr. Williams was on what looked like a conference call.

"That's them." Kelly giggled and smiled fondly at them. "They're like my second family." She sighed.

"You guys are close then?" Asher questioned, looking at Kelly now.

"Extremely. Every moment that I'm not with my own family I spend with them." Kelly admitted. "I don't have much of social life."

"Neither do I." Asher laughed. "I'm basically only friends with Nick, that's the guy I'm vacationing with." Asher said.

"That's surprising. You seem like you would have tons of friends." Kelly said. Asher nodded his head.

"I do look pretty cool, don't I?" Asher laughed. Kelly laughed with him. The two talked until the pilot announced that they were starting there decent and to fasten their seat belts once more for safety. On the way down, Kelly and Asher talked about their plans for their weeks in Mexico. Surprisingly, their plans were very similar, a lot of tours, beach days, and various activities.

"Almost there." Kelly said excitedly. "The descent is my favorite part." Asher watched her smile and laughed slightly.

"Mine too." He agreed. "It gives you a sense of hope, knowing–"

"Knowing that you'll soon be at your destination." Kelly finished his sentence and sighed, imagining the warm Mexico sun washing over her body.

"Exactly." Asher said, Kelly looked over at him and laughed.

"Maybe we'll see each other around. Ya know on the tours or at the beach or even at the hotel." Kelly suggested optimistically. Asher shrugged.

"Hopefully. I've liked talking to you, Kelly Rose Anderson." Asher said, using Kelly's full name, which she had told him earlier in the flight.

"And I've enjoyed talking to you, Asher Matthew McClean." Kelly responded with a giggle. They smiled and laughed at each other until the plane jolted forward, jerking them in their seats. They looked at each other with faces of excitement.

"Welcome to Mexico, Kelly."