He Made Even Pain Contagious

First Flight

I gave my mother a final hug goodbye and tensed under her grip. She didn’t want to let me go, nor did my friends who stood there trying to hold back their tears. “Mum, I need to go. I’m sorry, otherwise I’ll miss my flight,” I told her softly as she loosened her grip around my shoulders and slowly let go.  I stared back at her face one last time and memorized every little facet, from her laugh lines to her wrinkling eyes. Giving her a warm smile I turned around and started to walk away from her, towing my suitcase behind.

Slowly boarding the plane, I took my seat and rested my head against the cold glass of the window. My mind was a mess, thoughts were flying everywhere.

The plane took off and I looked below me at the glowing city of Sydney. While I was here on a plane, most of my friends would be partying off at a club getting drunk. I wouldn’t blame them, they had every right to. Today was in fact the final day of year 12 – a day of tears, hugs, happiness and joy; where everyone wishes for it to last forever, to never end. So while everyone was at clubs or parties here I was in a plane, ready to embrace my future.

It was not because I did not have a social life.  In fact I was quite popular in my school, definitely not a nerd! I loved my social life, went out to parties with friends, sleepovers, boys, you name it all. But there was one thing which differed me from an average teenager in high school, which was my ambition.

Ever since I can remember my ambition had been there, it was my goal. Not saying that I had always known what I wanted to be as I grew up. Trust me; I changed my professions like I changed clothes. But ambition, that was a whole new story; there was always this thirst inside me to be at the top. Even my friends said my pace was too fast, I should slow down, yet I couldn’t help it. My ambition grew with my age and by the time I had started high school, it was like I was in a race. I had no intentions of beating anyone; my ambition was to just come first, to be the best.  This is why I sat here in a plane instead of partying out with my friends, enjoying our precious moments together before we get caught up in the race of life.

I guess a reason for me being so ambitious was because I hated being that average class person. Average home, average lifestyle, average car, average family, I was sick of it! There was something always inside of me waiting to burst out. I wanted to be at the top! Not that middle class person anymore, I wanted to have the best home, best lifestyle and definitely best car! Why couldn’t I have the best things? What was stopping me?  Nothing. I had the opportunities, I went to school, and I had a home so why not make the best out of these chances I had? And from there my ambition has started. I wanted to be at the top, to be able to reach my goal.

  Looking forwards, I saw the passenger seat in front of me had shaken slightly? Almost as if it had vibrated, but I ignored it, thinking it was just my imagination. 

 Taking deep breaths, I tried to calm down my heartbeat, but I just couldn’t hold in my excitement! I just couldn’t wait to start my new life, to get prepared, to know what I’m going to do, to have everything planned. But just because I was highly ambitious does not mean I was not fun, I’m probably the most clumsy, idiotic person who has the worst sense of humor and I seem to bring bad luck to everything I do. My best friend always wondered why she bothered having to deal with me! It was really quite hilarious when she got all pissed off at my idiocy and the new highly stupid situation I had gotten myself into.

Lightly laughing at the thought of my best friend I leant my head against the plane window, which out of nowhere trembled? That was weird? I shook my head, distracting myself from the clenching feeling which was forming inside my stomach and opened my bag to find all sorts of cards from people saying they’re going to miss me.

Chuckling silently I looked over all the cards I had received, wow; I really was special. In a way. Sigh, boys. Never was I the quiet girl or the one who would charm all the boys. Usually I would scare them at first meeting, yeah call me weird one. Or the major flirt? Flirt not slut. Only talking, no touching; my number one rule when it came to guys.