A 20-hour flight is not something Callum was looking forward to. But for his Aunt Amaya, it was worth it. Callum couldn't wait to see her. His brother, Ezran, was on the balls of his feet, excited to finally get to see his Aunt.
Callum looks at the plane as he and Ezran board it. He was nervous. He hadn't been on a flight in so long. He remembers going on a trip with his parents to Scotland. Ezran was still a little toddler, and Callum was only 7. It was a long time ago, but he still remembers it. It was one of his great memories of his mom before she died. He shook off the grief filling his heart at the memory.
After some looking around, they found the seats they had reserved. It was a three-seater. Ezran takes the window seat, and Callum sits in the middle. He wonders who reserved the seat next to them. He dislikes human interaction, being the weird socially awkward introvert he is. He's trying to get over it, he really is, but he's just so insecure.
They were going to stay at their Aunt's place for a week and then go back home. He and Ezran have school. Their dad, Harrow, allowed them to go since it was a winter break and he couldn't come along, as he had many responsibilities and couldn't leave home. Harrow hadn't felt safe letting his two children go on a plane, unsupervised, even though Callum was already 18, but he understood that they needed to see their aunt and winter break was the best time to do so and trusted Callum to take care of himself and Ezran.
Callum and Ezran babble on with each other about their plans once they get to Aunt Amaya's. Ezran wants to go to the zoo. He loves animals. Callum just wants to stay inside as much as he can get away with. He's heard about the immense weather in Australia. How hot it was in the summer, and how daft and rainy it was in the winter. All he wants to do is stay inside with his face stuffed in his sketchbook. Callum knew it wasn't the ideal way to spend his time there, but he isn't interested in anything else.
A few minutes later, Callum notices a shadow pass beside him. He looks up and sees a girl. She was looking at him nervously. Then he realizes. She was going to sit next to him. He shoots her a sheepish smile, and she smiles back. She places her luggage, a green suitcase, in the storage compartment above them. She also has a black backpack but keeps it beside her. Then she takes a seat in the chair next to him.
The girl has elbow-length white hair, which baffles Callum. She looks maybe around his age and height. She's wearing an oversized turtleneck teal sweater with tight cuffs, and simple black leggings. He gets a glimpse of the color of her eyes. Lilac. Callum has never met anyone with any sort of purple eyes. They're pretty.
Callum was in his thoughts too deep and barely registers when the girl stares back at him. His eyes widen and he looks away. He curses himself for gazing at her. He decides to pull out his sketchbook and begin sketching to avoid the awkward atmosphere. The image of his mother is still stuck in his head since he was reminded by his first plane trip with her, together as a family, so he decides to sketch her.
Callum only manages to get the basic outline of the drawing before Ezran begins jabbering. He doesn't listen to Ezran and continues working on his sketch.
"-and so this flight would just be so much better if he came. I still don't see why pets aren't allowed on here." Ezran pouts. Callum looks at him, confused.
"Wait, what were you saying?"
"I was talking about Bait! It's unfair that he couldn't come. Why is your nose up in your sketchbook, anyway- oh." Ezran peers over Callum's shoulder and notices the drawing of their mom. He lays his head on his brother's shoulder. "I miss her, Callum." Ezran's voice cracks. Callum turns to give his brother a hug. "I miss her too, Ez."
"Now, if you're bored, go watch a movie like Frozen or something," Callum suggests to lighten the mood.
"Frozen? I don't like it. It's a girly movie with princesses and magic and stuff!" He waves his arms around to prove his point of the said "girly" movie.
Callum glares at Ezran. He shakes his head. Ezran dismisses himself to the bathroom, and Callum warns him to hurry before the plane takes off.
Callum hears a giggle from beside him and realizes that it came from the girl sitting next to him. Her eyes were lit up. She was looking at him. She was laughing at him. She speaks up. "Is that your brother?"
"O-oh, yeah, that's my brother, Ezran."
A few seconds of awkward silence followed, with Callum fiddling with the hem of his jacket. He decides to break the silence, taking a big step at not being a very awkward human being.
"Do you have any siblings?"
"No," she shook her head. "I've heard they're annoying but I wouldn't know. It gets lonely at home sometimes."
Callum thought about what it was like having a brother. "Ez and I usually get along well but the plane ride seems to be getting to him, I guess." The two were always there for each other for support, more Callum for Ezran, because there are things that Ezran still doesn't understand because of his youth. When their mom died, Ezran was so little and didn't remember it. He'd sometimes joke around and point out that Callum acts like a mom himself.
The girl nods in understanding. Then she puts her hand out. "Rayla."
Callum stares for a moment and takes in her features. Her white hair cascading down her back. Her sparkling lilac eyes. Her small nose. Her refined eyelashes. Her thin eyebrows. Her petite form. Her abnormally pointed ears.
Then he smiles at her and shakes her hand. "Callum."
-
Callum and Rayla spend the next few minutes chatting and getting to know each other more.
Callum found out that Rayla was also going to Sydney, Australia, to a martial arts competition and coincidentally lived only on the other side of the state he lives in. She'd been training since she was just a child. Callum recalls hearing about the martial arts place that she was going to since his aunt works there. She was a great fighter and also trained at a young age. Rayla and Aunt Amaya would get along pretty well, he thinks.
Rayla mentions that she was going on her own. Her parents weren't going with her because Ethari, her dad, owns a jewelry business and couldn't leave it, as the business is very heavy at this time of year. Her other dad, Runaan, needed to stay with his husband and do community service in the town.
"-and then he punched the man. Only because he called me a wimp."
Callum laughs, "no way!"
Rayla chuckles, "yes way!"
From what Rayla told him, Runaan seemed to be a very protective person. Kind of like Callum, but more, er- violent. Rayla didn't mind going on her own too much, she was just glad that her dads trusted her to go on a plane on her own.
A few minutes later, Ezran came back and sat in his seat. "What took you so long?" Callum asks.
"Some old man was there. Really took his time." Ezran crosses his arms. The young teenager looks at Rayla and waves, noticing that Callum has finally begun a conversation. "Hi, there!"
Rayla smiles, "Hey."
-
As the airplane takes off, Rayla and Ezran get along a lot faster than Callum would have thought, considering they just met. They all converse for a few minutes until a flight attendant begins strolling over to them, getting ready to ask for their order.
The flight attendant stops by them with a cart. She looks at them as she asks for their order. Rayla asks for a water bottle.
Callum and Ezran give each other a quizzical look. Rayla had only taken one thing. As a meal. They quickly pick out the food they wanted. Callum gets a cheese sandwich with a pack of nuts and some black coffee. Ezran selected a jelly-filled pastry that the flight attendant called a "Jelly Tart" and a box of apple juice.
They all begin to eat in silence. Ezran melted into his jelly tart, claiming that "tastes like Heaven." Callum only chuckles in response. He, on the other hand, earned more energy from the coffee he consumed. He looks over to Rayla, who is clutching her growling stomach.
"Hey, why aren't you eating anything?" He softly asks. She glances over to him from the corner of her eyes. "Food on an airplane doesn't do very well in my stomach, it only comes back up."
Oh. He takes out the pack of nuts that he had chosen. "I hope you're not allergic."
She shook her head. "No, but it's fine, don't worry."
He nudges the packet towards her, insisting upon taking it. He doesn't want her to go hungry on a long plane ride. "Fine," she grumbles, accepting the small snack. She pulls out a blanket from the bag resting at her foot and tears open the packet, curling up in her seat. Callum thought the gesture was cute.
-
Callum, Ezran, and Rayla ended up bonding over their similarities with each other. Ezran and Rayla both had a big sweet tooth. Callum and Rayla were both introverts who despised human interaction. They all loved music. They all love spending time with their family.
Even their differences made them grow closer. Rayla is a physical person. She usually has a snarky and sarcastic personality, while Callum despises anything physical and would rather sit in his room and draw, and is more calm and shy. Ezran on the other hand was just a sweet little kid who loved talking to people (Rayla and Callum couldn't relate at all) and still loves staying home and spending time with his family.
Ezran informs Rayla how he has a pet toad named Bait. He wanted to bring it with him but pets weren't allowed on that plane. Rayla did a great job cheering him up about the topic, uplifting the mood by telling him that he and Bait could spend all of the time they wanted together once they got back.
Harrow also called them a couple of times, Callum having to reassure him multiple times that they were fine.
Eventually, night had dawned upon them and it was time to retire to an airport in San Francisco where they would settle for the night. The next plane would pick them up at 8 am the next morning, so they have to wake up early.
The three of them sit in chairs right beside each other. Ezran decides to turn in early and takes up the space of three other empty chairs, snuggling in his blanket. Callum and Rayla stay up a bit longer, Callum takes the time to sketch some more, and Rayla pulls out her phone, scrolling on Instagram using the airport's free wifi.
Only moments later, Callum suddenly feels a heavy weight drop on his shoulder. Rayla. She'd fallen asleep on his shoulder. Pink lightly dusts his cheeks. He nudges his blanket and drapes it over her. He decides it was time to also sleep, so he sets his sketchbook down and gently lays his head on top of hers.
-
Rayla wakes up with a strangely heavy weight on her head. She sits still, taking a moment to take in her surroundings after just waking up. In the corner of her eyes, she notices Callum, who was sitting beside her. It was him who was laying his head on hers. She realizes that her own head was resting on his shoulder. Red begins to dust her cheeks.
He was awake. He was occupying his phone in front of him, scrolling through Instagram. She pulls away as quickly as lightning.
Callum hears Rayla stirring under him and suddenly shifts away from her. He looks at Rayla, who is now beginning to panic. She squeaks. "Sorry, I didn't mean to- I must have gotten really tired and didn't know what I was-"
"Rayla, it's ok. You were tired, and my shoulder can make a great pillow." He grins at her. She smirks back. He was right, though. Rayla hasn't slept that well in a while.
"Guess my head isn't too uncomfortable either," she mentions.
"Yeah, your hair is like a fluffy little pillow."
Rayla giggles quietly, lightly punching Callum on the shoulder. She pulls out her phone and checks the time. 7:34 AM. "We should start getting ready to go on the next plane." She was tired, her vision still slightly blurry and her body feeling heavy and lazy.
He nods. He reaches over to gently wake Ezran. They pack everything and retreat to their next flight.
Though she was wearing a thick sweater, it was still winter and the temperature was cold inside the airport. She begins shivering without realizing it. Callum seemed to catch on because he stopped in his tracks and leaned down to pull out a jacket from his suitcase. He hands it to her.
"What- Callum, I'm fine, don't worry," She informs him.
He shakes his head. "You're cold. This jacket is an extra." She softly smiles and thanks him.
As she slips on his jacket, a new feeling of warmth covers her upper body. It had a faint smell of Callum and coffee. She smiles to herself. Sweet dumb nerd.
As they board the plane, Ezran lets Rayla know that she can sit in the window seat because he wants to sit in the aisle seat. She thanks him (she loves the window seat. It was like her own little space). Callum plops down in the middle, between them.
Breakfast was served a few minutes later. Rayla picks a salad and a coffee. She swears she notices Callum grinning from the side of her eyes. He chooses a croissant with some cheese and fruit, and Ez gets a smoothie and a sandwich.
Once they finish, Ezran decides to spend his time looking at toad pictures on Instagram because he misses Bait. Rayla and Callum decide to watch a movie on Rayla's screen. Callum plucks out his earbuds from one of his pockets and he and Rayla share.
They begin to watch the movie. Rayla had chosen Tangled. It was one of the movies Rayla grew up with. Callum places some snacks in between them to split up. At one point, they both reached in to grab a jelly tart at the same time, and their hands briefly bumped into each other, causing them to turn into an awkward blushing mess.
Once one of the movie's well-known songs begins to ring in their ears, Rayla and Callum can't resist quietly singing along.
"-last I see the light," they sync.
"And it's like the fog has lifted." He looks at her with a soft smile.
"And at last I see the light."
"And it's like the sky is new." She returns the smile, giving him a caring look.
"And it's warm and real and bright, and the world has somehow shifted." Their hands slowly intertwine as they look into each other's eyes.
"All at once everything is different. Now that I see you." As if on cue, they both lean in. Callum's eyes flicker to Rayla's lips as she brushes his soft hair away from his face.
"Can you not?" Ezran was still looking at his phone, still a bit moody from the previous flight. Rayla and Callum's eyes lock for a moment before they widen, both of them quickly jumping away from each other.
Rayla looks anywhere but Callum and begins to fidget with her hair. Callum lightly slaps Ezran on the shoulder, pouting.
He turns back to Rayla, "S-sorry I- I don't know what I was-"
"It's fine, don't- don't worry about it-"
They sat in awkward silence, continuing the movie, not being able to drain the memory out of their minds (they weren't sure they wanted to, though).
Once the movie ends, Callum decides to take a nap. He eventually ends up nestling his head in his arms on the armrest. He didn't look too comfortable with his back arched like that, but it was the best he could get. Ezran fell asleep only minutes later.
Rayla stays awake, sitting still for a few minutes. Then she takes a glance at the sleeping boys. Ezran had his head thrown back with his mouth wide open, drops of drool slowly beginning to trickle down his chin. She then looks at Callum beside her. He looks so peaceful in his sleep. Hesitantly reaching over to Callum, she begins to feel his hair and ruffles it a little bit. It was soft. And fluffy. She sits there admiring the boy for a few minutes. The one she'd almost kissed. Why had she leaned in? To be fair, he'd also leaned in. She covers her red face in embarrassment and groans.
She lets out a breath. Her eyes begin dropping and she decides that it was time for her to take a nap as well. She leans her head against the window and closes her eyes, awaiting sleep.
-
Hours later, Callum rouses from his sleep. He turns to look at his brother. Ezran was spending his time playing video games on his phone. He looks over to Rayla, who had fallen asleep. "She probably fell asleep while we were sleeping. She looked pretty tired earlier." Ezran informs him.
Callum nods, glancing at her. He almost kissed her. He needs a few moments to process it. He still doesn't know why he did it.
Sighing, he sits back in a comfortable position on his chair, bored. He had nothing to do. He looks back at Rayla and notes how her white hair nestles itself on the window, and how a slight frown was etched onto her mouth. Her knees were curled up to her chest with her hands around them protectively.
He decided to pull out his sketchbook and pass time by sketching. He begins going into a daze as his hands unconsciously sketch on the paper. Once he snaps back into reality, he realizes that he'd been drawing Rayla this whole time. Glancing at the unfinished drawing, he decides to continue it.
Callum suddenly feels hot breath on his neck. "Callummmmm, why are you drawing Rayla?" Ezran whispers teasingly. "Do you have a crush on her?"
Callum somehow manages to hide a blush and begins to ramble, "No! No, I just- y'know, wanted someone new to draw and she looked like an interesting person to sketch."
Ezran rolls his eyes, smirking at Callum, and goes back to his video games.
Minutes later, stirring is heard beside him. Rayla was waking up. His eyes widen and he quickly snaps his sketchbook closed, not wanting her to see what he was working on.
"Sleep well?"
"Yeah, well enough. You?" She yawns in the middle of the sentence. Despite her being tired, she still asked about him. His heart flutters.
"Slept pretty well. My back hurts, though. I probably shouldn't have slept like that." Rayla giggles.
-
It's 7 pm. The plane just arrived at its destination, meaning it was time to leave. They begin to pack their bags and get ready to go.
A thought sneaks its way into Rayla's head as she looks at Callum. "Oh! Since we live in the same state and are going to the same place, here's my number. We might bump into each other again sometime." She blurts.
What did she just say? Did she really just give her number to Callum? She begins internally screaming. Why did she ask that?
She thinks her heart might know the answer. She slowly hands her phone to Callum, who stares at her for a few seconds. He needs a few moments to process what Rayla just asked. He quickly shakes out of his daze and exchanges numbers with her.
Soon, a clamor of clicking fills the plane as people begin unbuckling their seatbelts and shuffle to collect their bags from the compartments above. Rayla, Callum, and Ezran quickly collect all of their luggage and slip out of the plane and into the airport.
They get seated and wait for their rides. Callum and Ezran were going to be picked up by their Aunt Amaya and her girlfriend Janai. Rayla ordered a Taxi to come get her and drive her to the hotel she was staying at for the week.
"It was so nice meeting you! It would be so awesome seeing you again!" Ezran beamed at Rayla. The boy enjoyed her company and her personality. She was a caring and unique girl and seemed to be a great influence.
After a few minutes of chatting, Callum gets a call from his aunt letting him know that they arrived at the airport. He and Ezran begin to gather all of their luggage. Soon enough, Amaya and Janai appear into view. The boys run up to give them a hug. Rayla smiles at their little reunion. Callum and Ezran walk back to make sure they got everything and to bid Rayla goodbye.
Ezran envelopes her in a warm hug. She ruffles his hair. She was going to miss him. "I'm gonna miss you. I really hope we meet again."
Rayla giggles. "I'm sure we will. Now go have fun on your vacation. You deserve it, little guy."
Next was Callum. They catch each other's eyes for a few seconds and then rush to hug each other. She digs her head into his scarf as he holds onto her tightly. Moments later, they pull away. "I had fun with you. The flight would have been pretty boring, so thank you."
She can't help but break out into a big grin. "Same here. Just let me know if you need anyone to ease the boredom in your life." She crosses her arms and winks.
He chuckles, "Will do."
A call from Ezran indicated that it was time to go. Callum turns to leave but suddenly has the urge to turn back to look at Rayla one more time. He gives her a big smile that could light up someone's whole day and then leans in to leave a kiss on her cheek. "See you around."
He quickly turns to go, leaving a little gust of air to brush Rayla's furiously burning cheeks. She whispers, "See you."
She looks forward to the next time they cross paths, knowing it would be worth the wait. It may have seemed like a short amount of time, but their experience was like a Disney movie.