Love Finds You

Love Finds You - Part 2

Chapter 2

The seat belt sign blinked off. Jen unbuckled herself and tried to get a little more comfortable. Planes were such a hassle. Even in first-class the seats were ridiculously uncomfortable. The stewardess walked by and asked if Jen needed anything. She shook her head and the stewardess moved on, asking the other people in first class if they had any needs. Jen didn't hear their reply. She slid on a pair of headphones and let music take her away from her surroundings. Slipping in and out of sleep, she was finally awakened by the seat belt sign flashing and the pilot announcing their descent into Cleveland.

Good. This seat is awful! She would be sure to make a complaint to the airline about charging people for a first-class seat when it was as irritating as it was. Pulling off her headphones, she became aware they were cheap and didn't have the greatest sound. Strike two; she wouldn't be flying this airline again.

The plane landed and Jen was off in the direction of baggage claim. Aunt Gabby had told her someone would be there to pick her up, but she had no idea who. She walked into the terminal, looking around at the people. Would they have a sign with her name on it? That would be a first for her. On the many business trips she had been on, those picking them up had known who her father was and had never kept them waiting.

The terminal wasn't too crowded at that moment and after grabbing her luggage, she found a bench and sat down. She pulled out her cellphone and began searching for Aunt Gabby in her contacts. Suddenly a hand was on her shoulder. She whipped around to see a brown-haired girl, about her age, with dark brown eyes smiling down at her.

"Jennifer?" she asked with a friendly grin.

"Yes," Jen replied, standing as she reached out her hand.

"I'm Annie LaFaye," the girl said, shaking her hand firmly. "I'm glad I found you!" Her tone was overly cheery, and she had a slight southern accent. "The terminal is so busy today I was worried you'd get lost!" She giggled out loud and Jen laughed uncertainly. She wondered if Annie had ever been to New York City. More people lived in her apartment building than were in the terminal at that moment.

Annie helped Jen with her luggage and they began their walk through the airport and out to the car with Annie talking the entire time.

"So, you're Aunt Gabby's niece?" Annie asked, her eyes bright with enthusiasm.

"Huh? Yes, yes, I am. Are you her niece too?" Jen asked, wondering if maybe Annie was one of her long-lost cousins that she knew nothing about.

"Oh, goodness!" Annie laughed out loud. "No, I am no relation to her. She is just Aunt Gabby to me. She is Aunt Gabby to everyone actually! Well except the younger children, she is more Grandma Gabby to them. She's a real sweetheart and a treasure to our little town. Everyone is so excited to meet a real true-blue relative of hers! We were beginning to wonder if she even had any!" She laughed again and Jen felt a headache coming on. There was no reason for anyone to be this cheerful. She briefly wondered if Annie was on something but kept that thought to herself.

"Aunt Gabby asked me to come pick you up since she was planting her garden today. She is very particular about her schedule and getting things done on time. But why am I telling you that?" she giggled. "You're her niece, I'm sure you know her as well as anyone."

"I actually don't know her very well. I haven't seen or talked to her for quite a few years," Jen stated flatly.

"Oh, well how wonderful of you to come and visit her! I'm sure you're busy, living in New York and all. I've never been there but I hear it's pretty wild." Annie said the words 'pretty wild' in a hushed tone, as if she didn't want anyone else to hear. Then she winked at Jen like the two of them had a secret. This girl was strange. Jen hoped everyone in the town wasn't like Annie; she could only handle so many bubbly personalities at once.