The Intern

Chapter Twenty-Two: Airport

    June approached faster than I had anticipated. I already had my backpack and suitcase packed and ready to go. Lasercorn had offered to bring me to the airport this morning.
   Three knocks sounded at the door. I opened it and Lasercorn stood there with a small smile on his face, but his eyes told me everything and were pleading for me not to go. Mark's eyes did the same thing when I told him I was leaving for two and a half months.
   "Ready to go?" Lasercorn asked in a chipper tone. I slung my backpack over my shoulder and went to grab my suitcase, but Lasercorn picked it up before I could. "I got it."
   He put my suitcase in the back of his car and I got into the passenger seat. Lasercorn started his car and got onto the road.
   "I'll be back before you know it," I say. "Don't worry."
   "I know, El, but... I'll miss you."
   "We spent years apart, Dave, I don't think a couple months will kill ya," I joke. He turns to me, a frown plastered on his face. He opens his mouth to say something, stops, then turns back to the road.
   We arrive at the airport with enough time to sit in the car for a few minutes.
   "I'll be back, I promise. I'm going to see Louise, visit family, then I'll be back on a plane to California," I say. He nods.
   "I just have a bad feeling," he says.
   "I'll be fine," I say. I kiss his cheek and open my door. I grab my suitcase from the back of the car and slam the door. David gets out.
   "Ella!"
   "Yeah?" I spin on my heel and look at him. He quickly walks over to me and plants a kiss on my lips. His hands cup my face and my arms make their way around his neck.
   "Ella?" A voice cracks from behind me. I break away from David and turn around. Mark stands there with a look of hurt on his face. He's holding a rose in his hand.
   "Mark," I say. His eyes fill with tears. "I-I can explain."
   "No need," he says dropping the rose in the ground, stomping on it, and walk in away.
   "Mark, wait!" I yell after him.
   "Ella, its 10:30, your plane leaves in an hour, and you still need to go through security," Lasercorn says. I sigh and nod. I grab my bags and walk into the airport. I get through security and find the right gate with time to spare. I take out my phone and text Mark.
That wasn't what it looked like.

Really? Because to me, that looked like you kissing David.

I mean, that's what happened, but I didn't... I wasn't thinking. It just happened

"It just happened" Ella I'm not an idiot. I know that you've had a crush on him for awhile now.

Why didn't you say anything, Mark? Because I care about you too. I couldn't make up my mind between the two of you, you're both so great to me and I didn't know what to do. I'm sorry.

I'm making up your mind for you, Ella. Pick him. I don't want anything to do with you ever again. Don't talk to me.

I left it at that. My eyes filled with tears. I regretted how everything went down. I didn't want something like this to happen. Even if I had picked David I didn't want to stop talking to Mark, he was a great friend. The keyword there is 'was'.
"Now boarding flight 306 for Michigan," a woman over the loudspeaker said. I stood up with my backpack and headed over to the entrance of the gate, handed the woman my ticket and boarded the plane. The plane that would take me away from this place for a little while.