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“We are going to plummet to earth and die a fiery death, I know it.” I’m not sure what I thought my first airplane flight would be like, but I didn’t really picture myself holding my breath and clutching my arm rests in fear. I can’t seem to help it. Being in the air this high doesn’t feel natural. I look out the window to gain courage, but somehow staring directly into the inside of clouds merely justifies my concerns.
Oliver chuckles, which only manages to irritate me. Flying is not a good time; there should be no laughing allowed.
“No laughing?”
Apparently I said that out loud which only makes him laugh more.
“We are not going to ‘plummet’, would you relax? Put your headphones on and listen to some music, or better yet, how about watching a movie with me?” He browses through the selections offered on the screen located on the seat backs in front of us. Sighing, I nod thinking a distraction might help. We agree on a comedy. I figure if I’m going to crash and burn at least I will have laughed one more time.
When we boarded the plane I was surprised to discover our seats were in row four – meaning first class. When I told Oliver he shouldn’t have been so indulgent, he only smiled. This may be my first time on an airplane but even I know that these seats had to cost a pretty penny. Looking behind us through the thin curtain veil, a few rows behind us is coach seating, it’s clear that they certainly make first class more comfortable. Our seats are larger, made of a different material perhaps and they’re certainly more spacious; we have two seats to their three per row. As the stewardess hands me a moist towel and a beverage ordered by Oliver, I almost feel guilty that I’m afforded this luxury and am sitting up here while others are back there. Almost.
“Nothing is going to happen to us. Did you know you’re more likely to die in the car on the way to the airport than you are on the plane?”
“Oh yeah? Well that just makes me nervous for the drive back when we return. Thanks for giving me that to add to my things to worry about. However, I’m certain I’m more likely to die of cancer than this plane crashing or a car accident so at least there’s that.” I take another deep breath to still my nerves. However, I find it doesn’t work any better than the ones before and still find the experience to be unnerving.” Still laughing at my little joke, I turn to Oliver expecting to see humor but his face is clear of any kind of amusement and he doesn’t respond. Feeling guilty I squeeze his hand and smile, “Hey, it was just a joke.”
“I know you think it was, but I didn’t find it funny – at all. I just can’t laugh at that. Please, don’t say that kind of stuff okay?”
“I have to get through this somehow and a little humor helps.”
“I get it. I do. But I don’t find talking about your death, by airplane, cancer or… hell by elephant stampede funny, at all. There are plenty of other jokes or attempts at humor we can make that do not include your death as part of the punch line, okay?”
“Okay,” I nod but my lips curl into a smile and I do my best to wipe the smirk from my face but fail.
He gives me serious side eye, “Really? Do I even want to know?”
“An ‘elephant stampede’?”
“Shut up. You’re lucky I didn’t suggest an even worse demise. Besides, you got the point.” He crosses his arms over his chest and huffs, but the fact he’s smiling too only makes me laugh.
The rest of our plane ride is pretty easy going. I couldn’t help but have some concern and check on my life vest – perhaps more than a few times, aware we are flying over the ocean. I quietly offered a word of hope that my first time seeing it, would not be making a splash in it from the air. There was slight turbulence that made me grab onto him. My eyes were wide with terror and birds were flapping in my stomach, which only made Oliver’s eyes sparkle with mirth. “It’s okay. Totally normal,” he told me but it didn’t make me feel better at all.
We did laugh together while watching the movie and we even ordered a cocktail. They put a cute little umbrella in mine, which made me feel like I was officially on vacation.
After landing and gathering our luggage from the carousel, we quickly locate our driver so we can begin our drive to the resort. Oliver booked a private SUV even though the resort has a shuttle. He said he didn’t want us to have to wait around. I’ve barely begun wheeling my luggage toward the vehicle to meet the man already walking toward us when the air shifts, causing me to pause. Immediately I close my eyes and inhale. Taking a moment for myself now is absolutely mandatory – I need nothing more than to live in the moment.
“Remy?” Oliver calls and after a moment more I open my eyes and see he’s standing at the open car door looking at me with concern and curiosity. “Are you okay? Do you feel sick?”
“No, I’m fine. Can you smell it? I can smell the sea in the air. It’s amazing, it’s more than I imagined.”
Instead of rushing me, nodding or humoring me Oliver surprises me by closing his eyes too. Breathing deeply he too takes a moment to himself. When his mouth turns up in a smile and his mismatched eyes open to find mine upon him, I know my smile matches his.
The driver welcomes us with colorful and fragrant leis made of plumeria, tuberose and carnations and I again find myself deeply inhaling with closed eyes. As the driver begins maneuvering his way through traffic I turn to Oliver, “Any chance we can somehow go straight to the ocean?”
“You bet we can. I’d like to at least check in, but then we can ask them to hold onto our luggage so we can go straight to the beach.”
“Great. How long will it take us to get to the beach from where we’re staying? Which one do you want to go to?”
“You’ll see. It won’t take long at all.”
Nodding, I turn to look out the window and immediately decide to roll it down. As soon as the salty air rushes into the car I inhale deeply once more happy to have the smell of the sea in my nose, this time combined with the sweet fragrance from the flowers around my neck. I enjoy the combination the entire way to the hotel as my eyes devour everything we pass.
We’re in the SUV less than half an hour before it pulls down a long entryway and takes us yet further past a security gate. The road is lined on either side with palm trees. Smiling I grab my phone out of my bag and snap a photo straight up into the air where the palm trees are backed by the clear blue sky. Once we pull past the trees, the place we’re staying comes into view and my jaw drops. It’s the largest resort I’ve ever seen. It’s immense and the grounds are beautiful. “Oh my gosh, it’s huge! And this is so…lovely.”
When we stop, Oliver takes my hand to help me step down from the SUV. Taking in the ornate building, beautiful landscape and abundant flowers, we patiently wait while a bellhop loads our luggage onto a rolling cart. Once he has everything, he hands us a tag, “Please call this number when you’re ready for the luggage to be brought to your room. Until then, we will hold onto it for you.”
Oliver thanks him and places a tip in his hand before taking my hand and guiding me to the front desk. I’m too busy gawking at my surroundings to notice our place in line or the people checking in ahead of us. Rather, while Oliver completes the check-in process, I can’t help but wander a bit. The place is truly enormous, airy with significantly high ceilings. It’s opulent, yet somehow the décor and colors make it feel warm and friendly. Large koi ponds with flowing water over rock formations adorn the middle of the lobby. From where I’m standing I see the entrance to two restaurants, and behind one’s open wall to the outside, white linen topped tables and rattan chairs with umbrellas.
“Come this way,” Oliver says when he joins me. We begin walking toward the back of the resort when my eyes bug out of my face.
