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She nodded along to my soothing words, but when the plane started descending more rapidly, she closed her eyes, more tears squeezing out from her tight lids. My heart shattered seeing the terror twisting up her face, and I wanted to find some way to sweep it away, but I couldn’t fix the plane and make her feel safe again.
Minutes felt like hours as we continued descending closer and closer to the ground. The flight attendants hurried down the aisle, making sure everything was properly stowed away. Before getting seated themselves, they instructed us to get into the brace position. We did as they said, each leaning forward and pressing our heads into our arms.
“Brace, brace, brace,” the flight attendants chanted as we careened toward the ground.
That confidence I usually felt in life started slipping away as the cold, hard tarmac loomed below us. The reality of our situation shook me to the core as the flight attendants shouted to prepare for impact. Images of my family fluttered across my mind, intertwined with memories from the adventurous life I’d lived. But the one thing that didn’t appear was the visage of a woman I’d loved. Falling in love was one adventure I’d never gone on, and suddenly I felt a pang of sadness that I may never get to experience that rush of emotions if our plane collided with the ground and gave us all a fiery end. I’d never cared about falling in love before and had avoided such emotions like the plague, but now, I wished that just once, I had found a woman to love with my whole being ... perhaps the greatest experience of a human existence.
“Brace, brace, brace!” The passengers shouted along with the flight attendants. I pressed my head tight against my arms. The chanting continued, and I held my position, but when I heard Ivy’s soft sniffles, I peered out from beneath my arms. Her shoulders trembled with the shaking of her terrified body and her soft sobs. I broke my brace to slide my arm across her shoulder.
“I’ve got you, Ivy. I’m right here. We’re gonna be okay.”
Though I barely knew this girl, the thought of anything happening to her shredded apart my insides. I knew my body wouldn’t save her if we really did crash, but if there was even the slightest chance I could protect her from harm, I was taking it. I cocooned my body around her, squeezing her tight and holding on until I felt the thud of the wheels touching down.
Passengers screams echoed off the fuselage from the force of the landing, and then the plane bounced off the runway again. More screams reverberated around us as our bodies got tossed up and around, our seatbelts holding us fast. Another thump as we hit the runway again. I held Ivy tight while the tires shrieked when we bounced down again. The deafening roar of the brakes and engine drowned out the screams as the plane leveled out and slowed. I continued holding Ivy tight, desperate to keep her as safe as I could. Finally, the plane crawled to a stop.
Ivy’s shoulders rose and fell beneath me at a rapid pace, my own breath near panting as I continued holding her in my grip. The passengers erupted into cheers and applause, but we just remained silent and still.
“Are you hurt?” I asked.
Her breathing slowed, and finally, she answered, “No. I ... I think I’m okay.”
Even though I didn’t want to release my grip on her, I convinced my arms she was safe and they could let her go. Slowly, I sat back up, and then Ivy sat back up with me. When her red, puffy eyes met mine, she burst into tears, then launched forward into my arms.
“We’re alive,” she sobbed into my shoulder. “Oh, my God. We’re alive. Thank you. Thank you so much for being there for me. That was the most scared I’ve ever been.”
“Of course,” I wrapped my arms tight around her, burying my face in her hair. “I’ve got you, Ivy. And we’re okay now. We’re safe.”
She sniffled some more as she maintained her death grip around my neck. I continued holding her tight until the flight attendants started making their way down the aisle to check on everyone.
“Is anyone injured?” she asked the people in our aisle.
Ivy sniffled again, then released my neck, but to hell if my arms wanted to let her go. I had to pry them off one muscle fiber at a time.
“We’re okay,” I answered after finally convincing my arms to release this woman they seemed so desperate to cling to.
“Yeah. We’re okay,” Ivy agreed. “Thank you.”
The frazzled flight attendant smiled. “Just sit tight, and we will meet emergency crews to evacuate us soon. Once we get to a safe area, we will unload on the tarmac and get you to your next destination.”
“Thank you,” Ivy and I echoed, and then she moved on to the next aisle.
“Well, that was a new experience.” I blew out a deep breath and unbuckled my seat belt. “I mean, I try to live my life filled with new experiences, but I can honestly say I would have been happy to skip that one.”
Her eyes widened as she looked down at my lap. “The plane hasn’t stopped yet. You shouldn’t unbuckle until the plane stops.”
I chuckled. “We just survived a landing without flaps. I think it’s safe to unbuckle this tiny strap of fabric holding me in while we go five miles per hour down the runway.”
“But it’s the rule,” Ivy countered.
“Well, it’s a stupid rule, and I’m not one to follow rules. I’m pretty sure I’ll survive the impact if the captain manages to run into something on a completely empty runway.”
The tension in her face softened. “Sorry. I’m just such a nervous flyer, and with what just happened, I’m a complete wreck. And I’m still all kittywampus from last night, so it’s just a double whammy. I’m not normally such a pill.”
“Kittywampus?” A snort escaped my lips.
“Yeah. You know. Discombobulated.”
My lips tightened as I suppressed my laughter. “Wow. You sure have a lot of big words for hungover.”
