Mallory's Melody

Chapter 48

HE WOULD'VE MISSED HIS FLIGHT.

Jason was just entering the airport when he heard the last call for his flight. He ran at breakneck speed, as a person who only had one chance to enter heaven would. To him, London was heaven, the town where Lillian had lived, and the place where he would finally know peace.

He made his way to the check-in counter and stood behind a tuxedo-clad man who was conversing with the officer. Five minutes passed by and the man was still in conversation. And by the looks of it, by their giggling and smiling, it wasn't a formal conversation, but a rather friendly, time-wasting one. Jason tapped his foot against the floor, impatience gaining the upper hand. He would've thrown the man aside if not for what he heard next.

"My hometown is London, you know. I came here when I was nineteen and met a wonderful woman and married her. Things didn't go well between us, and we eventually divorced. I love her, I mean, we love each other, but we decided it was best if we were apart. They're some relationships that can't work, no matter how much of love is involved. I was meant to go to London today. But she called me over the phone to tell me she was pregnant—"He laughed—"After five years of marriage, she's finally pregnant. You can't just move on like that. I can't at least. I'm cancelling my flight. Just to be near her, to be part of our child's life. I mean, I want to go to London and forgo my responsibilities as a father. But I can't be selfish with the woman I love. I have to be there for her, with her, no matter how ugly things have become."

Jason's impatience fled away at that, and in its place was an overwhelming surge of guilt. He thought about what Diana had said a while ago, about Mallory possibly being in trouble, and replayed his insensitive, selfish response. "I can't go back to that Diana. I've been through hell and back. I'm not going back to that." He'd believed his selfishness was justified, that he was doing the best for himself by going to London. He was going to find peace, he told himself, but how could he ever find peace when there was the possibility that Mallory was in trouble.

He dug his hands into his pockets for his phone, and upon unlocking it, he was reminded again, of how much he loved that girl, Mallory Trent, so much so that he'd set her face as phone's wallpaper. It was the face that greeted him in the morning and said goodbye at night, her angelic smile never failing to abate his seemingly never-ending anxiety. He loved her, without any doubt, but what does one do when they are conflicted with loving someone and loving themselves. What?

He dialled Mallory's number, but it went straight to voice mail. It wasn't like Mallory had ever answered his phone calls before. She'd always ignored them, for reasons he wasn't yet clear of till this moment, but now, her silence unsettled him even more. That she was silent at a point when he needed to hear her voice, when he wanted to know if she was okay, was almost unbearable. Perhaps she was still mad at him for how things had ended between them. Maybe she was—

"This is the final boarding call for flight 456 to London. I repeat. This is the final boarding call for flight 456 to..."

Jason began to hyperventilate.

"Hello, gentleman," the officer called him forward. "Isn't that your flight?"

Jason shook his head yes.

"Aren't you going aboard?"

Jason sighed. "I don't know sir. I don't know what to do."

The officer smiled at him knowingly, as though this wasn't the first time he'd come across someone who was conflicted about whether or not to go on a flight.

"Just do what you believe is right for you, friend," the man said, and with that, all Jason's worries fled away.

He knew what was right for him. And he would do just that.

He took his flight tickets and sauntered heavenwards.