"Ladies and gentlemen, we're going to be experiencing some turbulence in the next few minutes so the seatbelt signs will be switched on." Tanner spoke into the intercom, addressing her passengers. "Please remain seated until they are switched off again, after which, the stewardesses will be more than happy to assist you once again."
"Just our luck we fly straight into a storm on your first flight to Brazil." DeMarcus quipped, adjusting some of the settings on the control panel to better brave the weather.
"Murphy's law, my friend." Tanner replied, placing both hands on the wheel. "What can happen will happen."
"Sure you don't want me to take over?" DeMarcus teased with a raised eyebrow.
"And have you bring us all down in a fiery blaze?" Tanner jested. "No chance."
Just then, the cockpit door opened and Emily popped her head in.
"Can I get you two anything?" She tried not to look too long at Tanner. The night they spent dancing in Rome was a little too close for comfort when it threatened to awaken something inside them both. "Some coffee or a bottled water?"
"I'll take a coffee." DeMarcus replied. "But probably best to put a lid on the cup just in case it gets pretty bumpy."
Emily smiled at him with a nod.
"Anything for you, Captain?"
Tanner glanced over her shoulder at the head stewardess for a moment. She also didn't want to share any lingering looks with Emily. There was a tension between them that was beginning to feel rather agonising.
"Nothing for me, thanks Emily." Tanner also put on a courteous smile for her colleague, trying not to make the moment any longer or more uncomfortable than it needed to be.
God, she hated feeling this way. She was beginning to wish they had never gone to that stupid party in Rome.
"Okay, I'll be right back with your coffee, DeMarcus." And with that, Emily left the cockpit. Tanner was beginning to notice how the click of the cockpit door stirred a hopeful feeling within her. A feeling of anticipation that Emily would be the one opening it. That she would get to see that beautiful face with those kind but passionate eyes once more.
"You heard Mac Harding's gonna be partnering with Boeing in the next couple of weeks?" DeMarcus changed the subject. He was getting tired of seeing his best friend pining like a jailed poet. "Apparently the contract's already been signed."
"I'm not sure I agree with a law firm partnering with a plane production company." Tanner stated as the darkness of the storm clouds was broken with a flash of white light, soon followed by the first stutter of the plane, causing any loose objects in the cockpit to clink and rattle. "What does a pack of money-hungry, starched-collared lawyers know about the complex engineering and coding that goes into building a plane?"
"My thoughts exactly." DeMarcus agreed. "You ever have a feeling like something's 'off' about a particular thing or circumstance but you can't put your finger on what it is?"
"I think we all do from time to time."
"Well that's the feeling I have about Mac Harding." DeMarcus stated. "Something's not quite right."
"I agree." Tanner responded, checking the navigation and slightly adjusting the plane's altitude in hopes of avoiding the worst of the storm.
"You have the same feeling.?" DeMarcus asked.
"The exact same feeling." The Captain nodded. "Besides, Charles Harding looks like a fucking Nazi."
DeMarcus snorted at his best friend's comment.
"Couldn't agree with you more." He replied with a laugh. "Ugh that platinum blonde hair that looks like he dunked it in a pool of peroxide and how painfully obvious it is that he got jaw surgery. He looks like if Barbie had sex with a fucking G.I. Joe."
"What happened to growing old gracefully?" Tanner chuckled. "I'm just glad we won't need to have much involvement with him, if any."
"Definitely not directly." DeMarcus nodded. "And that suits everyone just fine."
"The further the distance we keep from him, the better." Tanner agreed, bracing the plane for another shudder.
The cockpit door opened once again and in walked Emily, holding her tray with a styrofoam cup of coffee and a plastic lid on it.
"Here's your coffee, DeMarcus." Emily smiled, handing the First Officer his beverage.
"Thanks Emily." DeMarcus took the coffee cup and took a sip from it. "Mmm, that's excellent."
"Thank you very much." Emily nodded, jokingly bowing her head with respect for her First Officer. "Are you sure there's nothing I can get you, Tanner?"
"Nothing at all, thanks Emily." Tanner smiled over her shoulder at her head stewardess. She was more than grateful to receive one of those bright, soothing smiles back from her.
"Do you know how much longer we're gonna be stuck in this storm?" Emily asked the two pilots as DeMarcus took a cautious sip of his coffee.
"Maybe fifteen more minutes." Tanner replied as she checked the satellite navigation. "I don't think we've gotten through the worst of it yet."
"Shit." Emily sighed. "It's such a nuisance walking through the aisle in heels with all the bumping around. Plus some of the passengers are getting scared."
"There's no need for them to be scared." DeMarcus looked up at the head stewardess. "As always, this plane is in excellent hands. Tell them we'll put them down safely in Rio soon. We only have about an hour left at this altitude before our descent."
"Thanks DeMarcus." Emily nodded with another soft smile. "Also I don't mean to pry, but I heard you two talking earlier. Have you heard anything more about the Mac Harding partnership?"
"Too much for comfort." Tanner stated. "I don't like it one bit."
"Neither do I." DeMarcus replied.
"Why do you say that?" Emily queried, furrowing her eyebrows.
"Huge law firms like that from New York are only interested in partnership with big companies for one thing." Tanner explained. "It starts with 'M', its coat of arms is the dollar sign, and it always ends with someone getting fucked up the ass."
"Too true." Emily nodded, rolling her eyes but snorting at the colourful analogy.
"Lawyers don't know a goddamn thing about aviation." DeMarcus joined in. "They probably think 'the Wright brothers' was a law firm too."
"Good one Marc." Tanner snorted. "I just have a bad feeling about it, Emily. If something ain't broke, don't fix it."
"Do you think Boeing needs their funding or something?" Emily asked. "Are they in some kind of trouble?"
"It's hard to say." Tanner stated as the plane entered some more turbulence and started to shudder once again. She kept her eyes straight ahead and her hands firmly on the wheel, ready at a moment's notice to make adjustments should anything go a bit wrong during the storm. "We don't have much contact with the Boeing CEO. And the heads of giant companies in America have a tendency to be much too prideful for their own good. If Boeing's in financial trouble, Mr Morenburg will never admit it."
"You're probably right." Emily sighed. "How will the partnership affect us do you think?"
"No one's really sure yet." DeMarcus answered after another sip of his coffee. "Hopefully we'll come through it unscathed, 'hopefully' being the operative word."
"That's not very reassuring." Emily gave DeMarcus and Tanner a somewhat concerned look.
"I don't think there's much use in worrying ourselves about it right now." Tanner gently banked the plane in an attempt to avoid the darkest clouds in the air, which were sure to cause the most turbulence if they flew straight into them. Thankfully it was a success, and the plane shuddered but not forcefully enough to cause any panic.
"I agree with Tanner." DeMarcus told Emily before finishing off the last of his coffee. "When all is said and done, we don't actually know what will happen from this point forward. We need to just take it day by day, as we always have."
"Absolutely." Emily nodded in agreement. "I'm sure everything will be okay."
"We might be asked to be present when they announce the partnership in Wisconsin." Tanner stated, pointing at herself and DeMarcus. "Rumour has it Boeing will be building a new plane to rival the Airbus A360 that's being launched in the next few months. Law firm partnership or not, it will definitely be an exciting time."
"I heard about that." Emily replied. "There's a possibility of Spartan getting one or two units of the new Boeing. We might even fly on it a couple of times."
"If we do, DeMarcus and I will have to go in for training to make sure we know what we're flying." Tanner told her head stewardess. "It shouldn't take too long though. A few hours of simulator training is really all we need for new Boeing planes; just to understand any changes to the controls and the layout."
"I'm sure you'll both be great." Emily smiled assuringly at the pilots. "I better get back to the cabin. How much longer before we descend?"
"About forty minutes." DeMarcus had a look at the navigation monitor. "We'll be on the ground in an hour."
"Great." Emily smiled. "Go to it then."
With two taps of the back wall of the cockpit, Emily opened the door to return to her fellow stewardesses who were still looking after the passengers.
"How's it looking, Em?" Jasmine asked her.
"The worst of the turbulence should be over soon." Emily explained. She and Jasmine were soon joined by Caitlin and Melissa. "We'll be at the airport in an hour."
Out of the corner of her eye, Emily noticed a little girl who couldn't have been older than 6 clutching her teddy bear close to her chest with tears softly falling down her little cheeks.
"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" Emily knelt down to speak to the little girl.
"She's scared from all the shaking." The little girl's mother informed Emily with a soft smile as she gently stroked her daughter's little blonde head.
"There's no need to worry, my angel." The girl looked at Emily with big, teary green eyes. "Captain Levin and First Officer Williams are two of the best pilots in the world. They're going to land the plane soon and you'll be safe and sound."
"Are they your friends?" The little girl asked in a soft, shaky voice.
"They are." Emily nodded with a smile. "And they're your friends too. And friends never let anything bad happen to each other."
The girl's mother nodded reassuringly at her daughter before throwing Emily a quick, warm smile.
"What's your teddy's name?" Emily asked, trying to distract the little girl from her fear.
"Cubbi." The little girl clutched the bear even tighter in her arms.
"That's a lovely name." Emily smiled widely at the girl and her teddy. "Hold on tight to Cubbi so he can keep you safe and I'll bring you two some candy. Would you like that?"
The little girl nodded and her mother smiled at Emily in thanks as the head stewardess stood up again and made her way to the front of the cabin to fetch her her treat.
"I also hated flying at that age." Melissa told Emily as she walked into the cabin. "Funny how life turns out, isn't it?"
"Yeah, it is." Emily smiled softly, retrieving a KitKat from the candy compartment of one of the food carts.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have just begun our descent into Rio." Tanner announced over the intercom a while later. "The weather on the ground is a rather breezy 19°C with some expected rainfall once we land. We'll be ready to wish you a safe and happy stay in about twenty minutes."
"Breezy? That's putting it lightly." DeMarcus told Tanner once the Captain had finished making her announcement. "Air traffic control said there's gail force winds on the runway and visibility is less than perfect."
"We'll be fine, Marc." Tanner stated. The runway was still visible despite the mist from the rain and the lights on the tarmac were on. "We'll do a crab landing."
"Aye aye Captain." The pilots prepared for the approach to the runway.
Tanner steered the plane in the direction of the wind and the plane made a slightly diagonal approach towards the runway with Tanner keeping the wings level. The Captain had to fight against the forceful wind trying to push the plane off course. One lapse in concentration could have spelled disaster for everyone on it. The wind wipped into the plane at breakneck speeds, causing a few beads of sweat to form on Tanner's brow as she held on tightly to the wheel and the stick, trying with all her might to stay on course as the black tarmac of the runway came closer and closer.
After a bumpy touchdown in during which both Tanner and DeMarcus were holding their breath, the plane landed safely and taxied off the runway and into the airport terminal.
"Another happy landing." DeMarcus patted his Captain on the back as they prepared to do their final checks before disembarking.
At the hotel, the entire crew was exhausted from the flight so everyone went straight up to their rooms. The time to celebrate the successful crab landing would come. Everyone needed rest first.
Still thinking about the conversation she had with Tanner and DeMarcus about Boeing's partnership, Emily lay down on her bed and opened her phone to type in 'Mac Harding, Boeing'.
She tapped the first article and began reading.
BREAKING NEWS
Boeing passengers rejoice! A partnership deal between aircraft manufacturer Boeing™ and esteemed law firm Mac Harding Ltd was recently signed between two representatives of each company, sparking some speculation that a new commercial Boeing aeroplane could be in production in the coming months.
In a press conference on Tuesday morning, Boeing CEO Paul Morenburg stated that a new era in commercial air travel is on the horizon, and that the partnership with Mac Harding provides an exciting opportunity to build a new aeroplane which will boast greater fuel efficiency and modern aerodynamics which will revolutionise the comfort of commercial air travel and bode well for a more eco-friendly method of flight.
"Boeing and Mac Harding are delighted to have come to this agreement. Together, we will achieve new feats in modern aviation for commercial air safety and a greener tomorrow. More information regarding the prospect of a new aircraft coming into production will follow in the coming months." A spokesperson for Mac Harding partners Charles Harding and Rupert Mac stated in the press conference.
While a celebration roars through the head offices of Boeing and Mac Harding, both companies have come under some public scrutiny regarding the partnership, with critics raising concerns about Boeing's agreement to partner with the New York law firm. The concerns centre predominantly around Boeing's capability of producing a rival aircraft to Airbus' A360, which is due to launch in August of next year. Doubt is setting in as to whether nine months is sufficient enough for the design, development and production of a new commercial aeroplane, and, given the timeframe available, whether Boeing is at all capable of rising to the challenge.
After reading through a few similar articles online, Emily closed her browser and switched off her phone screen before setting it aside and readying herself for bed.
The following evening, the crew were gathered around an outside table at a local restaurant called Marchezinho, sharing drinks to their successful flight and landing and indulging in the exquisite Brazilian cuisine.
It was a beautiful night. The rain had cleared the sky and across the black abyss was a blanket of stars. Brazilian flags hung across the awning of the seating area and a local samba band was playing inside, filling everyone at the restaurant with a sense of vibrance and patriotism.
"To Tanner." DeMarcus raised his glass, followed by the stewardesses and, lastly, Tanner as she looked up at her First Officer. "Hell of a landing, Captain."
The table toasted to their young leader and took a sip of their drinks.
"You weren't too bad yourself, Marc." A broad smile graced Tanner's features as she slapped DeMarcus on the back.
"You were both brilliant!" Melissa exclaimed. "That turbulence was enough to make some of our nervous passengers wet their pants but you two kept it together and got us here safely."
"Yes, thank you to both of you." Caitlin smiled, raising her glass to the two pilots, who nodded at her in thanks, clinking their glasses together with hers.
"Ladies you should have seen that crab landing." DeMarcus stood up from his chair, spreading his arms to mimic the wings of the plane and demonstrate. "Textbook perfection. A perfectly timed turn into the wind, coming in at the runway, landing gear down, a few last minute maneuvers and then BANG! Touchdown!" DeMarcus whacked the table forcefully with an open palm, sending two of the drinks toppling over.
"Woah woah! Be careful." One of the waitresses, clearly a local girl with tanned golden skin and long, dark, curly tresses approached the table and wiped the spilled vodka and lemonade off the table top.
"Sorry, miss, he goes nuts after a few drinks." Tanner chuckled, handing the attractive young waitress the now-empty glasses to sit on her tray.
"Better keep a closer eye on your boyfriend." The waitress said in her local accent with a smile as she stood back up from the table.
"Work colleague actually." Tanner informed the waitress with one of her megawatt smiles. "If anything we're siblings."
"Oh." The waitress's smile grew slightly as she quickly looked Tanner up and down with a look that any idiot could read as mildly flirtatious. "That's good then."
As the waitress walked back to the bar and DeMarcus shot his best friend a knowing look and raised his eyebrows, for the first time ever, Emily felt a twinge of jealousy deep inside her. Suddenly, a small part of her wanted to go back to the hotel.
Melissa was the only one who caught the slight change in Emily's demeanour. She placed her drink down on the table.
"I'm going to the bathroom. Come with me Em?"
"Sure." Emily picked up her purse. She was all too happy to leave the table for a few minutes and she followed Melissa through the bustling restaurant and the blaring samba music to the restroom in the back.
As soon as the swinging door closed, Melissa turned to look at Emily.
"Got something you wanna say to me?"
"What?"
"What happened out there." Melissa folded her arms. "With Tanner and that horny looking server."
"There's nothing to talk about, Mel." Emily sighed.
"Yes, there is." Mel folded her arms, looking her best friend dead in the eye. "She was flirting with Tanner and suddenly you got all miffed."
"I didn't get all miffed, don't exaggerate." Emily rolled her eyes. "Besides, it's none of my business."
"It is if you like her." Melissa was tired of tiptoeing around it. "You obviously do."
"There's no 'obviously' and there's no 'like her'." Emily didn't want to look Melissa in the eye.
"Em," Melissa spoke calmly, in a gentle tone, trying to avoid further upsetting her best friend. "I'm not trying to piss you off. I've seen the way you look at her. We all have."
"And how do I look at her?" Emily furrowed her eyebrows and cocked her head slightly, folding her arms; her usual defensive posture.
"Like she's fucking superman or something." Melissa replied. "I know she's your colleague and I know you two don't want to mess things up. But she's also the only person who's ever brought out a side of you that I've never seen before."
Melissa pulled out her phone and scrolled through her camera roll to find the pictures she took at the party in Rome. She found the one she was looking for; it was Tanner and Emily dancing. Tanner was right in the middle of giving Emily a spin, and both of them had the biggest smiles on their faces. The moment was so well captured, it could have been a Rembrandt painting.
"Look how happy you two are, Em. Look how happy you are when you're with her." Melissa scrolled further back to when they were at the gelato shop and Tanner was right in the middle of paying for Emily's chocolate cone. "You're smiling. You're laughing. Hell, you're even blushing. To be honest, I don't think I've ever seen you that happy and laid back."
By this time, Emily felt as if she was listening to Melissa's voice from underwater; her own realisation drowning out her best friend's words.
She remembered their first flight together; how Tanner was so kind to the little boy she had brought to see the cockpit. The flight to Rome where Tanner came to her defense against the difficult passenger and comforted the tearful young mother the passenger had been harassing. How she made sure Emily was okay when the ordeal was over and she was recovering from her bout of sickness. When Tanner was playing pool against DeMarcus in London and she was secretly rooting for her Captain. How Tanner had made her laugh at the hotel bar the evening before.
And the way Emily felt the moment they first met on the London flight. Tanner's eyes. Her hair. Her skin. Her scent. Her mouth. The way she looked so fucking good in her uniform even though Emily had seen dozens of pilots in the same one. She was incomparable. Even her presence made her feel...
Emily needed a moment to search for the right word.
Safe. She made her feel safe. More than butterflies. More than heart palpitations. More than fireworks. Tanner made her feel safe.
Melissa watched Emily's face slowly change. Her eyebrows unfurrowed. Her mahogany eyes widened. Melissa watched the realisation come down on her best friend like the crumbling of a conquered castle.
At that moment, finally facing the truth and what this could mean for her and her colleague, only one thought played in Emily's mind.
Fuck you, Tanner.
Fuck you.