The Flight Delay

24:00

24:00

|| Detroit, Michigan, USA ||

            One more hour till landing.

            One more hour till I can finally walk around freely.

            I feel the smile on face starting to form as I allow myself to seat back into my seat in relaxation. However, just as I am about to put on my ear-buds to start listening to music, the voice of the flight attendant comes onto the speaker overhead. "Ladies and gentleman, we're sorry to inform you that there will be a slight delay in our landing about approximately half-an-hour. We're extremely sorry for an inconvenience but the weather is out of our control at the moment," she says. She then switches to Japanese and says the announcement all over again.

            A heavy sigh escapes my lips.

            A half-an-hour delay...

            I can handle that.

            By the time the plane has landed in Detroit, it is already more than an hour late.

            "I'm going to miss my flight!" I screech out as I jump out of my seat and quickly take out Jenny's suitcase from the overhead compartment. I place it beside her seat and she just gives me a warm smile.

            "Thank you," Jenny says. "but you do realize that most of the flights are going to be cancelled, right? Even the flight attendant just said so a few moments ago on the speakers. You don't have to be in such a rush, Jessica."

            I laugh as I look down onto my watch. 

            I have approximately twenty minutes to get to the gates.

            "If there is one thing that you should know about me, Jenny, is that I hate being late. If my boarding pass says I have to be at the gates by a specific time, I'm going to make sure I'll be there at that time," I reply, taking my own handbag from the overhead compartment and slinging it around my arm. I close it shut and give Jenny a hug. "It was nice sitting with you, Jenny. Really, it was. Usually, i have to sit beside snoring dudes and potential serial killers. You're just gonna wait for you're wheelchair, right?"

            Jenny nods. "Yes," she answers. She then gives me another hug. "It was nice being seated with you too. Now go. Catch your flight. Maybe you'll be in luck and it won't be cancelled."

            I give Jenny one last grin before turning on my heel. But just as I am being swarmed by the large masses of people, Jenny calls out my name, "Jessica!"

            I look over my shoulder. "Yeah?" I shout back.

            Jenny smiles. "I really do hope that your love story with that boy continues," she says.

            I feel the heat rise to my cheeks, but I only nod in response. 

            Me too, Jenny. Me too. 

            "You seem a little anxious," the officer behind the glass says as he runs my a scan on my passport (or whatever the hell they do inside their little cubicle). I almost don't hear him, but when I look back to him, I immediately straighten my posture.