Disparate Journey

Chapter 2: To The West

  They tell me that life is a one-way street, As if I am too dumb to know.

I might as well keep moving on forward, There's not much choice where to go.I would like to lighten the luggage I've accumulated over the years.I'd be smart to release all the memoriesThat brought about heartache and tears.

-Alora M. Knight

*****

An announcement just made precisely on 10:00 p.m. by a man in his early 40's, clothed in a dark blue uniform and a purple lanyard card ID holder wore around his warm ivory skin neck. Red mark beneath the card holder could be that he had been scratching the area for minutes, or itchy since the beginning of wearing it.

His announcement made everyone rose to their feet, readying to board. Their eyes glowed with lips curled into a radiant smile and lifted eyebrows. One child sprang of thrill, releasing back his red jacket hoodie and sprinted towards the boarding gate, generating low squeaky sounds each pace from his small sized shoes.

Left behind were his parents, finding for the boarding pass. From trousers pocket to the inside of the wife's handbag, I watched them as I stride to the boarding gate. Inside my handbag, there weren't much things, tidy and easy to find the boarding pass. Back then, a mound of tissues and bills filled the handbag, collected as if they were better kept rather than disposed. But we all are lazy people, who would take things lightly.

The boy frowned after waiting for a brief moment, his parents still stood there fretful, finding for the pass that was playing hide and seek at the wrong moment. His arms crossed, tramping towards them because they were the only one who still didn't queue whereas the others, waiting patiently for their turn to embark the aeroplane.

Shortly before my turn, they eventually found it and darted to the queue. The husband's eyes widened- knowing that they still had time to queue and were the last to embark, possibly because of filled with gratefulness. He stroked the child's dark curly hair, lips pursed seeing that his little son sulked.

*****

Approximately, 11 hours and 20 minutes more to arrive at the terminus. The aeroplane was safe and snug with courteous cabin crews. 40% of the passengers brought along their family for a holiday and I sat beside the boy with his mother.

Despicable Me 3 was playing on an Ipad covered in blue train case, like what typical casings children would want to put on. He persisted in reminding his mother about having a starved belly, wailing for Bacon-Ranch Chicken and Pasta.

By some means, I misheard pasta with pizza. Musing how it may taste normal yet everyone would label it as a weird meal. Someone can double the pizza portion they normally consume when trying pasta-pizza- because it looks tasty.

His mother relaxed and lounged back, shameless that her son was wailing because of hunger. I struggled to listen to the songs played on the headphone with some buzzing in the ear and his irksome high voice that drew the other passenger's notice too.

Uttering even more 'I WANT TO EAT! BACON-RANCH CHICKEN AND PASTA!'. A passenger at the front-side seat turned to the back, rotating his upper body in a half circle. 'Be quiet, we're gonna eat later. Now, go sleep first' he muttered.

'NO, I WANT IT NOW, DAD!' his high voice clamoured, thumping on both sides of the armrest. If my hand was on the armrest, it might got thumped too. A slender-looking stewardess, came from the resting area in the aeroplane towards the mother, murmuring with pressed lips.