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Lexie
Therewasnothingworse than airport security. She had been standing in line, alone, for the last hour, waiting for it to move. Everyone else in the group had fast passes or some skip-the-line shit she wasn’t privy to because she never traveled. She had only left Otsego a handful of times, most of which were with Oliver, but they had never traveled enough to be on any frequent flyer lists or utilize any benefits of skipping the security line. It was finally her turn and she found herself in a sour mood. She tried to remind herself of the final destination—a week of pure bliss out on the open water with her closest friends.
Kennedy showed her the itinerary on the way to the airport and excitement bubbled up as she read through each of the locations they’d be making stops and the things to do in each. She learned the Catamaran would be fully staffed for the week, so no one had to worry about food or drinks. Plus, with the boat being fully staffed, they could stay on the boat if they chose to during port stops. She appreciated the option to opt out of socialization and planned to take full advantage of those quiet moments.
Lexie finally got through security and slipped on her shoes. She re-stuffed her carry-on bag and stood. Sweat was dripping down her back and the annoyance of the present moment sat right in the center of her mind. She just wanted to find her gate and sit down before the long flight to St. Thomas. She looked around at the signage and pulled her ticket out of her pocket. As she peeled her eyes back up to navigate the terminal, she heard a familiar voice beside her.
“We are at gate 15. C’mon, I’ll show you where.” Nav’s voice filled her hectic mind. Through all the noise around her and the bustle of people rushing by, time seemed to stand still as shepulled her face to meet the smile spread across his. He nodded down the terminal and Lexie took a step forward, matching his stride.
“I could have found it on my own,” she said.
“I know you could have, but I also know just how much you enjoy standing in lines and figured you’d welcome a distraction. I assume that hasn’t changed over the years,” he said with a chuckle.
She rolled her eyes, but also found herself smiling.
“You really need to get signed up with TSA PreCheck so you can avoid all that bullshit,” he said as he pointed his hand behind them.
“Yeah, yeah. I don’t travel enough for that.”
“Which is surprising, honestly. You always wanted to travel. Or at least you always agreed with me when I talked about traveling.”
She shrugged her shoulders but remained silent. She had wanted to travel, it wasn’t ever a lie, but as the years went by she realized the desire didn’t lie in the wanderlust. The desire to travel was solely to be with Nav. She wanted to be close to him and experience life with him. Her mind quickly flashed back to her 14th birthday when the travel lust began. Her parents hadn’t allowed her to invite any boys to her party, despite knowing and loving Nav themselves. She figured it was one of the first failed attempts her parents made to get her to branch away from Nav and find other friends.
As she laid in bed that night, she heard the familiar sound of a rock hitting her bedroom window. Slipping out of bed, already fully dressed, she pulled her window open. She stuck her head out and saw the gleaming smile of Nav standing in the dark. She tossed on a sweatshirt and cautiously climbed down the side of the house before jumping straight into the leaves at Nav’s feet.
“Happy birthday, Lou,” he said as he reached in for a strong hug. She hugged him back and they wandered off to the overlook near her house. Her parents owned several acres of land on the lake, but the house itself was away from the water for fear of flooding. They snuck down the trail they had worn into the grass between the trees and rested along the rocks scattered amongst the sand. As they stared out into the dark waters, Nav handed her a little red box. “How was your party? I wish I could have been there.”
“It was fine,” she said as she slowly peeled off the wrapping paper and crumpled it into a ball. She pulled the lid off and a blue notebook came into view. “What’s this?” she had asked him.
He pulled the notebook out of the box for her and ran his fingers through it, flipping through each page. “It’s a National Park passport book. We’re gonna get out of this town someday and when we do, we’re going to visit every National Park together. First stop,” he paused as he pulled another gift from his pocket. “Ellis Island. My dad already talked to your parents—we are going next weekend and you’re coming with us!”
Lexie couldn’t contain the butterflies swarming around her stomach. The thoughtfulness behind this gift meant more to Lexie than anything she had ever received. Birthdays with Nav were one of her favorite traditions and he surprised her more every year. This particular year felt different though. As she flung herself against Nav’s body, he pulled her into his lap and squeezed against her. An unfamiliar feeling crept through her body and she had the sudden urge to kiss Nav. Instead, she pulled back and sat next to him, leaning her head against his broad shoulder as they looked out at the calm waters around them. It was at that moment she started to feel romantic love for Nav seep through her heart for the first time.
She pulled back to reality as Nav stepped off the moving walkway and veered left, waiting for her. He reached out and touched her elbow, sending a shockwave through her entire body. Lexie could focus on nothing other than the way his rough hands felt against the smooth skin of her arm. She met his gaze as he nodded and motioned toward the corner of the gate where their friends were sitting. He pulled his hand away from her and Lexie found herself missing the warmth of his touch. As they approached the group of friends, Lexie smiled at the way the group had overtaken the entire corner of the gate. Eagle and Adam were playing a game of cards, Payson and Avanna were watching a video on an iPad, and Sedona and Kennedy both had their headphones plugged in while they read. It all felt oddly normal, which was something new to her, especially in the last few months. Nav motioned toward an empty seat opposite Eagle and Adam. She glanced around and saw Nav’s bags were resting in between what he signaled as her seat and the seat he slipped into. Before she could thank him, he had his headphones in with his head tilted back and his eyes closed. She rearranged the bags she had with her and glanced around. The screen above the gate agents showed their flight was on time and boarding was set to begin in just ten minutes.
She pulled her ticket from her pocket and glanced at her seat number. She was likely in the last boarding class due to her economy ticket. Living on a teacher’s salary prevented her from being able to afford first-class seats like the rest of her friends. Technically, she had received money from Oliver’s life insurance policy, but it was sitting secured in an account she didn’t plan on touching. She used part of it to pay off the rest of her house because it’s something she couldn’t afford without his income, but other than that it felt wrong to use the money he left behind.
She listened intently as the boarding process began. Nav shifted next to her as he stood to board with the other military members, but before he stepped away, he extended his hand with an envelope. She opened her mouth to speak, but snapped it shut, unsure what to say. He shook the envelope again, silently asking her to take it before he rested it on the seat beside her and walked onto the plane. She stared after him for a moment, noticing the way his muscles rippled beneath his thin shirt. She glanced around at her friends, who were all too occupied gathering their belongings to notice anything was awry with her. She pulled the envelope open and saw a plane ticket staring back at her. She glanced back at the boarding line, expecting Nav to still be standing there. She pulled the ticket out and compared it to her own. They were the same ticket, except the new one showed her in Boarding Group 1, with her seat listed as “First Class”. Heat rushed across her face in a panic. She grabbed her bags and walked straight up to the counter.
“Excuse me,” she spoke as she waited to garner the attention of the gate attendant, who pulled her eyes up to meet Lexie’s. “My friend just gave me this ticket, but I think there might be a mistake. I don’t have a First Class ticket.”
The kind woman behind the counter reached for her tickets and typed into her computer before tilting her glasses down to respond. “Looks to be correct. You’ll be sitting in seat 2A—it’s a window seat in the second row. You’re up for boarding now if you want to step over here,” she said as she signaled to the plane entrance. Lexie stood and stared for a moment before nodding her head. Her friends were right behind her, but with the rush of getting onto the plane, they were shuffled apart. Lexie wasn’t sure if Nav had paid to upgrade her ticket, or if he had swapped his with hers, but it was sneaky. And it was just like Nav...always caring for others in the quietest ways.
