ZestyBlindGuy

Chapter 1

“She’s dead.”

The ticket agent’s sunny disposition suddenly fell into a frown. Richard stared at the tickets he had handed her, a tear starting to form.

“Don’t worry. You can get a full refund. All you need to do…” The rawness of her death hadn’t felt real until this moment. He started to feel angry as the agent droned on.

“Forget it. I just want on my plane,” said Richard. “I want to leave this God-forsaken town behind.”

His plan had been to have the funeral, get on the plane and never return to Luck again. Luck. What a terrible name for a town. Everything unlucky that had ever happened to Richard, happened here. Or maybe he was just misplacing his current emotions. Surely, meeting Clara here had been one of the luckiest things that had ever happened to him.

Once Richard finally found his seat on the plane, he put in earbuds and closed his eyes. At least he wouldn’t have anyone sitting beside him. If they didn’t refund his ticket, they couldn’t resell it, right? As if on cue, a boy about sixteen years old sat beside him.

“Uh… excuse me. This seat’s taken.” Richard glared at the boy.

“Oh, I’m sorry. They just sold me this ticket. My flight was cancelled. I was supposed to get a room. Then this seat opened up,” said the boy, more matter-of-fact than apologetic. “I’m Isaiah, by the way.”

Isaiah reached out a hand in greeting, which Richard dutifully shook. “I’m R…Simon, and you’re in my wife’s seat.”

“Well Simon, I don’t know what to tell you, but…”

Isaiah was cut off by the flight attendant going through the usual preflight speech. After she finished, Isaiah began again.

“So where is your wife then?” he prodded. Richard groaned and put his earbuds back in. This was going to be a long flight.

“Rude,” mouthed Isaiah as he pulled out a video game from his bag. “Must have left you, I bet.”

This got Richard’s attention. He removed one of the earbuds, and sneered at the boy. “Yes. She did. But it isn’t any of your business.”

“Whoa… uh…” Isaiah scratched his head nervously. “I’m sorry bro, I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“It’s fine. Just a bit recent. Go back to playing your game. Hopefully we’ll be in Tokyo before I wake up again.” He looked out the window at the clouds. They looked angry. “Huh… what was that?”

“I didn’t say anything,” Isaiah replied, sounding confused. He went back to playing his video game.

—

Simon let out a grunt as the plane rocked from turbulence. Isaiah looked over at the middle aged man, that he found himself sitting next to. He felt bad for the man, obviously heading to a honeymoon that never happened. Why were adults always like this?

“What was that?” Richard asked as he removed his earbuds and stretched awake.

“Just a little turbulence, I think. No big deal, big guy.” Here he was trying to reassure this man, when he was terrified himself. “But that blonde chick that I think might be an air Marshall, got up and went to first class.”

“That’s not normal, at least I don’t think it is.” Simon said, a concerned look showing in his furrowed brow.

Isaiah’s seat begin shaking violently. “Oh God! We’re going down!”

“Sweetie, stop it. Leave the nice man alone.” A woman in the seat behind him piped up. It was just a little girl kicking the seat out of boredom. “I’m so sorry, sir. It won’t happen again, will it Avina?”

“No, mommy. Promise.”

Isaiah turned around to look at the woman and realized that the aisle seat to his left had been abandoned. “It’s okay, ma’am. I’ve just never flown before.”

The missing passenger emerged from the restroom, and took his seat just as the “Fasten Seat Belts” light came on. One of the flight attendants came over the P.A. system and informed everyone of the obvious. Turbulence. Wear your seat belt. It’s all going to be over quickly. At least Isaiah hoped. He glanced over and Simon, noticing the man had taken out his ticket stub.

“Richard Stringfellow,” Isaiah read out loud. Richard jerked he head towards him. “You lied to me, didn’t you?”

Before Richard could reply, a loud roar filled the air. The fourths blinked out a few times. When they returned, the blonde woman that was definitely an Air Marshall came bursting through the door from first class.

“No body panic! Everything is going to be okay!” she shouted unconvincingly.

Isaiah clamped down hard on Simon, no, Richard’s hand. The woman dove down the aisle and the man in the aisle seat unbuckled and ran after her. Then the lights went out again.

—

Richard was certain this was the end. Just as well. He didn’t want to go to Tokyo anyway— not without Clara. But he was going to die with this poor scared teenage clasping his hand as if he could do anything to save them.

Then the plane shook again and everything we t blindingly white as a roar of wind engulfed them. Richard looked over his shoulder to see if he could make out the circus act happening in the aisle, but the light filled his vision.