Moving on

"Fresh start"

Frigid, but a much-needed breath of fresh air. Sitting on a plane for two and a half hours, with the occasional delay, isn't how I would have liked to spend my evenings, although... staying in Nashville wasn't a favorable alternative either. I thought to myself. I release a pocket of air that I didn't realize I was holding; aside from resembling a bright-eyed tourist, I feel more relaxed and peckish at the moment. As my eyes set out on my stomach's quest for the closest airport delicacy, my mind made a greater effort to persuade me that the hotel, where I would be residing for the next few days, had my body's (mainly my digestive partner's) best interest at heart. With a quick, and rather a deep yawn, my decision was made for me, and so I went off in search of my luggage. By the time I had reached the crowded area filled with everyone's personal belongings, I started feeling... peculiar. Firstly, I hadn't spotted my suitcase yet and the belt has already made its rounds at least twice, my bag is a dark purple color so I don't think it would be that hard to miss, but here we are. Second, it feels as if I am being watched. The stare wasn't so intense that a hole could have been bored into the back of my head, but it wasn't a delicate/harmless glance either. I made the conscious decision to dive into the sea of agitated and fatigued passengers to see if I could start a little game, and after hearing an irate person yell at someone to 'watch themselves' and another bark 'excuse you', I knew that the chase had begun. "Excuse me, pardon me." I repeat several times with the first thirty seconds of our light game of tag. The sudden tsunami of adrenaline has coated me in a thin layer of energy and sweat, distracting me from my earlier feelings of hunger and fatigue. One sharp turn after the next through this throng of large and small persons has me anxious yet excited at the possibilities of whom could be after and me. I hadn't told any of my family members or friends that I was arriving a day earlier than what was originally planned, so this person was truly a mystery as far as I was concerned. Is it a man or a woman? Are they young or old? What intentions could they possibly have in if they get their hands on me? Are they really pursuing me? It seems the time for pondering my questions was over because my curiosity had been gnawing at me since the start of this and it had gotten the better of me, so I thought it couldn't hurt to peek at my potential captor. I sprung into a brisk walk and made a sharp right towards the front of the claim area and lagged back a couple of rows. I spotted a stand full of newspapers and magazines that were just cheap gossip rags, I grabbed one that had Brad and Jen plastered on the cover with several, yet cheesy dating rumors/assumptions framing the beautiful photo of the former married couple, I flipped through a couple of pages and told myself to wait for the grand reveal. "Watch yourself!" I hear someone yell out within the crowd. "Use those fucking eyes in your head and pay attention to where you're going!" I hear a young man bark out to my right. The swift tapping of their shoes continues on past the disgruntled duo that just yelled at them about their lack of sight, their shoes don't sound like heels that belong to a woman, at least not high ones for that matter, they sound expensive enough to be the oxfords of a man or a new pair of some cheap knockoffs. And like clockwork, a light breeze zips past my back and out the plethora of bodies, I take this as my signal to glance at the stranger who has kept me on my toes for what felt like an eternity, but was probably no less than five minutes. And with one more turn of this sleazy pile of papers they call a magazine, I return it to the spot on the rack where I snatched it. What a damn joke I chide. I take a deep breath to quell my excitement before I move forward with the reveal. Just as I thought, I smirked; My assumptions were indeed correct, and although I was happy to see my observation skill are still sharp, I was taken aback that the enigma(I now know is a man) was carrying the same eggplant color suitcase I initially came here for. The tall man with ash blonde hair appeared to be confused and stressed out, it seems he was really looking for me after all, but why? I could only imagine it seems. He's dressed in a jet black suit with the shoes to match, the only accent is his white vest under the jacket, The suit is tailored to his measurements, that much I can see. All the dips and curves of his form are enhanced by whoever stitched together his impressive attire, I must admit that he looks very dapper and his body was probably carved from either marble or granite; whichever choice his creator(s) made, they did a damn good job and I am not complaining about the nice view. The distracted man seemingly decided to stop searching for who I can confirm was me, he then proceeded to slide his long, slender and manicured hand that wasn't occupied, into his pocket to retrieve his cellphone. It's the new foldable Samsung, I am a little surprised that it's not an iPhone; he's dressed like an executive, he might as well have the money and technology to keep up the facade. He's dialed and proceeded to call someone and looks to be explaining his current predicament to the occupant on the other end, the creases in his brow tell me the conversation isn't exactly pleasant either. Once again curiosity has me in its clutches and now I want to hear said phone call figure out what further action he plans to take; luckily for me, he is standing near a coffee shop. I still couldn't reveal myself to him, he is still a nameless stranger that's holding on to my personal items for some unforeseen reason. With this in mind, I once again plunge deeper into the sea of people and allowed the flowing current of people leaving the area, to carry me out of his field of vision and behind him, towards the shop. "Hello! Welcome to Bean Express, would you like to try our 'Unicorn Horn latte' today?" the young girl kindly inquired. Her clear olive skin seems to glow under the shop lights and her honey eyes twinkle with inquisition as she waits for my answer with her small and polite, yet professional smile; how cute. "No thank you sweetheart, may I have a medium-sized americano with extra sugar to go please?" I chimed back. "No problem ma'am, may I have your name?" she said, "Victoria." I smiled. "I will be right back with your order." she relayed. I thanked her and reached in my back pocket to grab my phone to use the 'Samsung pay' app, thank the gods for technology. I added a ten dollar tip for her great customer service and told her that I'd be waiting at the far end of the counter on my right as to not block another customer, she nodded and left to start my order. I sauntered into position and opened 'Twitter' to assume the role of a young adult just checking her socials while she waits, and as I got closer I began to hear the conversation. "My apologies once again sir, I was careless and assumed this would be a quick assignment, but I can assure you that I still have her belongings and it is unlikely that she has left the airport. She may be eating or resting somewhere right now, the flight was only two hours but with the delays, I would say about four or five hours." he replied confidently. I smirked at his response, although it is nothing more than an educated guess/wise observation, he is not wrong; Interesting I thought. My amusement was evident on my face, I am going undetected as someone that may be laughing at a meme or video. After listening to a few more seconds of the discussion, I came to the conclusion that the person on the other end of his phone is most likely his boss, or a superior to our enigma but an underling to another, and that's from just the formalities alone. He caught my attention with his next statement; "Not a problem sir, we will have her there by 9:30 tonight and report back." he concluded. I glanced at the upper right-hand corner of my device to see that it was 6:55 pm. It seems the game we are playing has changed and a time limit has been added as well. Before I could think about what actions I would put in motion, the beautiful barista whose name tag read 'Ming Hui', came over and delivered me a warm cup that had my name with a heart beside it and a moderate amount of napkins. We parted ways, with me going to find a booth on the opposite side of the cafe. Now that I know we are playing hide-n-seek instead of tag now, I have to change my strategy; Maybe I should drag this out just to make him sweat, but part of me felt the fatigue and my once peckish, but now wolfish hunger creeping up on me once again. I picked up my cup and brought the plastic spout to my lips, which made me finally realize how cold I am right now. The small sip ignited a fire in me, that started in my mouth and spread through the rest of my body like a glass of milk being spilled on a table. Now warm, I started getting the gears in my mind turning about how I could avoid my nameless pursuer and get my luggage back, all while trying to slip out of this maze they call an airport. While thinking of new ideas and possible opportunities, my thoughts started drifting back to the phone chat from earlier, I remember that he said "We". I am slightly shocked that I glazed over that small, but very important piece of information. It seems that he may have called in back up, and here I thought he was an idiot for coming alone. A fool. I thought to myself. While lost in my thoughts, I made the mistake of not paying attention to my surroundings, it was only for a few short moments, but a mistake that I of all people shouldn't have made. Truly an amateur thing to do I chided myself. In the time I took to underestimate my known opponent, an unknown party crept in without my knowledge; By the time I had realized it, they were too close. If I panic or try to run, they may figure out that I was on to them, and playing in a game that they had unknowingly participated in by choosing to pursue me. The only thing left for me to do right now would be to truly step into that 'new girl in town' role until I can figure out what part I play in all of this. As I went to take another sip, the presence got stronger; I swallowed and took a shallow breath and readied myself, because regardless of my preparedness, the game may be ending here...or will it? And with that concluding thought, I felt a face materialize near my left ear, and although my back was against the booth and I wasn't able to clearly see the face using my peripheral vision, I came to the conclusion that this was a man by his scent alone; It was 'Creed Aventus' to be exact. His voice confirmed my hypothesis shortly after processing all of this, although rich and sultry, his words made the warning bells in me begin to ring. 

"It seems that I have finally found you, Ms. Knowles."