George sat anxiously at his terminal waiting for his flight to land so he could board. A thousand thoughts rushed through his head and his heart began to beat quickly. Sweat beaded on the side of his face and his lips were pulled into a thin line.
He was beyond worried for Clay and his family. George had spent the night preparing for the worst, thinking to himself what he would do if Clay finally kicked the bucket. Maybe get that programming job that was always in the back of his mind or dedicate part of his time to finding someone to love. He had a list and it was considerably extensive.
"Flight 214 in Terminal A5 will be arriving in a few short moments. First class please make your way to the front and we will scan your tickets. Everyone else please wait until your class is called."
George stood up and shuffled to the front, pulling one suitcase and a small carry-on behind him. Yes, George had bought a first class ticket and it was by no means cheap. He had spent all his money in his account and then some just to pay for it. To be honest, the British programmer didn't know he could make the money back quickly, if at all.
"Excuse me, sir. Could I please see your ticket to board?" The young lady asking George for his ticket gave him an impatient stare. "Oh, I'm sorry. Here you are," George held out his left hand and let the woman scan his ticket. "Thank you sir. You may now board the flight. It's finally pulled up to the bay."
Taking in a deep breath, George began walking down the landing into the plane. He was still anxious and pleaded with whomever was listening to keep Clay alive just a little bit longer.
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"Please buckle your seatbelts and prepare for takeoff. Please do not take turn on your electronics until we have gotten to a safe height and when we have, there is free wifi to use on the plane. Thank you." A crackly voice sounded over the plane intercom as George stared out his window. The asphalt was shimmering with a light rain and fog covered a good chunk of his view. This was nearly every day in England.
George suddenly felt the plane begin to back up slowly before turning out of the terminal bay. The plane was directed to one of the closer take off lanes as it waiting for its turn to take off. It took about 20 minutes of waiting and when the plane pulled up to its take off location, George began to feel even more anxious than when he boarded.
A roar sounded from the plane's engine and a whir could be heard from behind. It sounded like a weapon powering and there was a sudden lurch as the plane began to move, speed increasing. George was pushed to the back of his seat and the speed finally hit. The plane shot forward as if it were a bullet out of a gun and the wheels were lifted off the ground.
Below him, George saw the London skyline fade beneath the fog until it became nothing but a faded line. It looked oddly beautiful. Something so magnificent fading so quickly into the background; it was peaceful and he hoped Clay wouldn't go so quickly.
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Once the plane had reached its designated flight height (oops, rhyme time :o ), George took out his laptop and connected to the plane's local wifi. It was horribly spotty and he was kicked multiple times when attempting to accomplish a few programming deadlines before he had to land. It was frustrating, but despite the annoyance George actually managed to complete one of his assignments.
Ding ding
George looked down and saw a message come through his phone. It was from Clay's mother.
'George, when you arrive, please let me know. I will come get you at the front of the airport and from there, I will take you to my house and let you sleep in one of the spare rooms. Hotels here can be expensive and I want you to save some money.'
'I don't even have money to spend,' George thought to himself. The thought was not taken unkindly; however, and George found himself smiling at Clay's mother's hospitality. She was a kind woman and understood George's tight monetary situation back in England. His job rewarded him with little to nothing and his paycheck was certainly barely enough to pay the bills.
"Attention everyone! Please power down your electronic devices and fasten your seatbelts. We will begin to land shortly." George tucked his laptop back into his bag and put his phone back into airplane mode. He felt the plane lurch to the right as it began to turn in the air getting back onto course for the landing.
He was here. He was about to be in Florida. He was going to see Clay and he was BEYOND fearful.
He had hoped Clay was still sleeping soundly in the hospital bed, disconnected from any kind of life support and able to dream peacefully as his body healed.
George let out an exhale and turned his attention back to his window. The Jacksonville skyline came into view and George took in a sharp breath. The skyline looked similar to London's, but much more bright and illuminated with different colours of various buildings. The coastline was also fairly close and George filed a mental note to travel to the beach. He also saw a large pond with fountains and blue lights illuminating the flowing water. It was honestly breathtaking.
"We are beginning to land. This is the final call to put away all electronics and fasten your seatbelts."
George suddenly felt the plane dip. The feeling of dropping entered his stomach and the young man began to feel slightly sick. George hated landings and every single time would grab the armrests and hold on for dear life.
The plane continued to dip and the Jacksonville International Airport came into view. It was fairly huge with two symmetrical wings and planes lining those wings for passengers to board at their terminal.
George's plane tilted slightly to the left and looking out the window, he could see the landing strip rushing up to meet the plane's lowered wheels. George gripped the seat as he felt the plane's tires touch the asphalt before coming slightly back up and bumping once more down for a final time onto the strip.
Finally that was over.
Once the plane had reached the passenger bay, George stood up and opened the compartment above his seat to grab the one suitcase he had brought with him and carefully taking it down, moseyed up to the front of the plane and exited, feeling a slight warm Florida breeze flow through the open areas of the passenger tunnel.
Pulling out his phone, George opened Clay's mother's contact. Pulling up her recent text, George responded with 'Finally made it to Florida. I'm out of Terminal B2. Are you coming to meet me?'
Not too long later, she responded. 'Yes. I just arrived at the airport. I'm waiting at the front where everyone else is getting picked up. Who do I look for?'
'A kid with messy hair wearing a blue shirt.' George laughed at his response and began his long trek to the front of the airport.
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Pushing the doors open, George was blasted with warm Florida air. It smelled faintly of the sea and carried a light breeze with it. Suddenly, a buzz came from his phone. 'Is that you who just exited by the red pick up truck?'
George looked around and sure enough, he was next to a red pick up truck. 'Does the kid look like he just rolled out of bed? Then yes.'
'Hahah! I'm waving in the distance.'
George looked up and saw a blonde woman wearing a black tanktop waving him over. Grabbing his suitcase and making sure he had the rest of his luggage, George walked over.
"You must be George then," as the young Brit came into hearing distance of the older woman. "A pleasure to finally meet you and please, call me Jennifer. How was your flight?"
George smiled slightly. "It was nerve-racking to be honest, but I made it in one piece so I believe that's good?" Jennifer laughed. "Well, welcome to Florida! I had hoped the circumstances might have been better to meet, but unfortunately not."
George's smile faded from his face as he gave a small "mm" in response. The thought of Clay in a hospital room came rushing back and he forced back a stream of tears which threatened to fall. "How is he doing?"
Jennifer frowned. "So far he's doing alright. The doctors say his body is healing well enough, but he's in a coma and we're all worried he isn't going to get out of it. It's a good thing you came when you did, George. We don't know if he'll-" Jennifer stopped and wiped away a couple tears. "We hope he's going to make it, but why don't you see for yourself? I was headed there myself and decided to pick you up on the way."
George nodded. "That sounds perfect, thank you."
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The Jacksonville skyline shot by as George stared out the car window. He wasn't thinking about anything besides the state Clay would be in and to be honest, George hoped he could meet those kids who did this and give them a piece of his fists.
"George, we're here." George looked over at Jennifer as she turned off the car and turning back, he noticed they both were in the parking lot of the hospital. "Are you doing alright George?" He nodded and opened the door slowly and got out, examining the large and imposing hospital building. "I am, yeah. Thank you for bringing me here."
Jennifer nodded and walked over the George's side of the car and leaned in for a hug. "I hope he'll be alright," she muttered and standing back, ushered for George to follow her into the hospital building.
[1682 words]
Author's Note: Thank you all so much for the votes and reads on my stories! It means a lot and I'm so glad you all enjoy this!
This story is a three-part special so stay tuned for the final part! It will be out as soon as possible and it will most likely be as long as this one.
Again, thank you for the support! <3