Wedding Catastrophe

Chapter 2

“Lisa! What on earth are you doing?” Mom had come into the room, and judging by the scowl on her face and the hands on her hips, she was not happy.  “Get back inside and finish your dinner! You know the rules: no electronics until after dinner.”

“Mom,” I began, “something’s come up, I need to go to the airport.”

“What!  The airport?”

“Yes.”

“Lisa, what could be this important that you need to go to the airport?”

I took a deep breath.  “Elsa’s in trouble.”

Mom took a look at me, but she didn’t seem convinced.  

“Anna really needs me to come.”  It hurt to lie to my mother, but some things just need to be done.  I had to be there for Elsa. I couldn’t let Anna do this alone.  

Mom still gave me a disapproving look.  

“I’ll pay!”  I shouted.

“Fine, get in the car,” Mom gave in and grabbed the keys.

I took hold of my suitcase, knowing that, as a princess, the plane would not cost me a penny.  

I ran out into the car and loaded my suitcase in the back.  Mom started up the engines and we began to drive to the airport.  

The drive was fairly silent.  We pulled into the international terminal of the airport.  I got out of the car and walked over to the back to pull out my suitcase.  

“Are you sure you’ll be alright?” Mom asked.  “I can ride with you if you want.”

“Mom, I’ll be fine,” I smiled.  “Besides, you need to stay with Jelena.”

“Mrs. Gregory can take care of Jelena,” she said, referring to our neighbor.  “Are you sure you don’t need my help?”

“I’m sure, Mom,” I said, embracing her in a hug.  “I’ll call you when I land.”

“Be safe.”

I let go of Mom and turned towards the terminal.  “Bye!”

I walked away from Mom and into the terminal, which was bustling with tourists.  I started towards the security line, which ran down the airport packed with people.  I wasn’t worried about the time I would lose in line, because, as a princess, I could skip the line.  I reached into my pocket and produced a small card. It appeared just like any other official ID, but this card gave me special royal privileges outside of my kingdom.  I didn’t use it often, but today I could use it to skip the security line. Being a princess certainly has its perks.  

I showed my card to the officer at the front of the security line, who nodded and let me pass.  I dropped my suitcase onto the scale, hoping it would be light enough to fit in the 50 lbs carry-on limit.  34.5 lbs. It would fit. I moved through security rather quickly and was released into the main area of the airport.  I located a flight board and started scanning the destinations. Shanghai...Los Angles...Ottawa...Rome...Dublin! The flight departed in an hour from gate 203.  I looked over my shoulder; I was at gate 521. I started running down the hall of the airport, the gate numbers decreasing as I ran. 500...471...422...396. I was around gate 352 when my phone started buzzing uncontrollably in my pocket.  I let it ring. It stopped by gate 341, but soon started up again I stopped by gate 300 and grabbed it.  

“Hello?”

“Lisa!  What on earth are you doing?” Anna’s voice was clearly heard on the other end.

“Anna...I’m kind of busy right now,” I started.

“Busy getting on a plane?”

“What!”  I was so surprised!  How could she know that?  I had certainly never told Anna about my secret plan.  

“Lisa, your mom called.  I told you not to get on a plane!  Stay in America!”

“Anna,” I began, “Elsa’s in trouble.  I’m coming, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

“Lisa no, you’re nuts.”

The loudspeaker crackled overhead, “Flight 1094 to Dublin is now boarding at gate 203.”

“Anna, I need to go.”

“Lisa, don’t you dare hung up!”

“Goodbye Anna, see you in Ireland.”

I hung up.

I stuffed my phone back away and continued traveling to gate 203.  When I got there, a line of passengers was already forming. I rushed up to the official and held my Princess Card in his face.  

“Please, I’m Princess Lisa of Arendelle,” I said.  “I need to get on this fight.”

“Your highness,” he bowed.  “I’m sorry to say this flight is booked solid.  First class is full.”

“You don’t understand!  I need to get to Dublin!” I shouted, practically begging.  

“First class is full,” he repeated.  “There is another flight at 5:32 tomorrow morning.  If you would like, I can get you on that.”

“First class is full, but what about coach?  I’ll take that!” I interrupted.

“A princess in coach?” the official frowned.

“Please?  I need to get to Dublin.”

“I suppose I could check, your highness.”

The official walked up to a desk, meanwhile, the line was thinning and the coach passengers began to load.  

The official came back with a smile on his face.  “You are in luck,” he said. “There was a cancellation, so a seat has opened in business class.”

“Thank you so much!” I smiled.

“I’m sorry for the inconvenience, please accept this apology for putting a princess in business class.  Next time, I can assure you will be put in first class, where a princess belongs.”

The official seemed to be personally offended that I had to ride in business class.  Me? I wasn't bothered at all. I had never ridden in business class before, but I’d heard it was pretty nice.  I stepped in behind a tall man and boarded the plane. Whereas he turned toward the back to go to coach, I turned into the business section of the plane.  I found my seat next to an older businesswoman who was already hard at work on her laptop, typing away in a Word document.

I looked across the aisle at the window.  The sun was just beginning to set. My phone buzzed in my pocket.  A text from Anna lit up across the screen. I didn’t even read it. I swept the notification across the screen and turned on airplane mode.  After sliding my phone back away, I leaned back in my seat and closed my eyes.  

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking, we are preparing for takeoff.  Please fasten your seatbelts and keep your seat in the upright position until we have reached cruising altitude.  Thank you for flying with us.”