Stranded

A Fangirl's Meeting

Life was awesome. Matilda was very excited. Today was her twenty-first birthday and for a present, her dad was letting her go on a trip that she had dreamed of since she was little. She was going to Australia! She squealed inside.

So here she was, buisness class, in her plane clothes – track pants, baggy shirt –(She had normal clothes in her back pack) and listened to music while she waited for the plane take off.  Matilda felt a tap on her shoulder and looked up into the most mesmerising blue eyes she had ever seen.

"May I get past you?" he asked, revealing a British accent. The man was tall, and that face, she had seen that face before but she couldn't remember where. His hair was hidden underneath a grey hoodie.

She gave him a friendly smile. "Sure." She pulled up her legs and he slid past her with such grace that she could never hope to achieve.

After a bit of shuffling from him, he finally settled down. As he pulled off his hood, Matilda let out a small gasp.  Fair hair lined his face, carefully styled in his usual hairdo.

She was looking into the face of the one and only, her idol, Tom Hiddleston.

If he heard her gasp, he didn't show it. Most likely he didn't hear it, as a pair of earphones were firmly lodged in his ears.  She stared ahead, tense with excitement that her celebrity crush was an arm’s length away from her. Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, she snuggled into her seat.

The next few minutes were dreary as they showed the safety video, the flight attendants doing a live demonstration. Matilda stared at the screen, uninterested. The plane started to line up the runway as the flight attendants buckled themselves in. One flight attendant approached them both.

"I must ask you to turn off your electrical devices. We are about to take off." Matilda turn hers off without complaint, however, Tom Hiddleston looked pleadingly at the attendant.

"Please." she said firmly. With a downcast look, he turned his off.

The plane was gathering speed, eventually taking off. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him lean further into his seat, his hands gripping the arm rests; his knuckles slowly turning white as the plane went higher.  His eyes stared blankly ahead, like a deer caught in headlights. Matilda was unsure of what to, since he was famous. She immediately scolded herself. Famous or not, he was a person and she would do what she wanted.

She placed her hand over his. His eyes flickered over to hers and they locked eyes. 

Giving him a comforting smile, she said, "It's going to be alright." It must have been weird, having a ten year age difference between them; but Matilda didn't mind, she was doing the right thing.

He nodded and his eyes went back to staring ahead, his figure relaxed slightly.

After what seemed like a long time, the seatbelt sign finally turned off, and Matilda took her hand off his. Tom Hiddleston breathed a sigh of relief and turned to face her.

"Thank you." He said simply.

"It's no problem." She replied.

"I believe I haven't formally introduced myself. My name is Tom Hiddleston.” He held out his hand.

Matilda took it. “I know.” She said with a smile. “I’m Matilda Bernard, but you can call me Mati.”

“I know.”

What? Did he just say what she thought he just said? “You’ve heard of me?” she asked.

“Yes.” He said with a small chuckle. “I’ve seen many of your theatre performances. Quite outstanding actually.”

Oh. My. God. He said that? About her?

Blushing ferociously, she said. “Th…Thank you. I didn’t think I was that good.”

“But you are!” he protested. “Anyone can act but only few are artists. You, my dear, are one of those few.”

“Well, I’ve wanted to act since I saw you on stage.”

It was Tom’s turn to blush, however his was only slight. “I’m flattered.”

The conversation went on like this, each talking about their experiences on stage, Tom giving her tips and tricks for performing and Matilda, well, she just listened to his velvety voice.

The conversation died off when food was offered and Tom and Matilda were striking up a friendship, finding common ground in the theatrical arts.  After a few hours they both slept, not wanting to succumb to jet lag.

Matilda woke first, being a light sleeper.  Stretching her arms and shuffling her legs, being careful not to deny Tom any sleep, she glanced out the window. Her eyes widened.

That’s when she heard the screams.