“Micah,” I breathe when it ends, “that’s incredible.”
River looks up from his own phone with interest. “Thatwas really good, man. What’s your process like? Do you start with lyrics or melody?”
“Usually melody,” Micah says, his eyes lighting up the way they always do when he talks about music. “I’ll be messing around on guitar or piano, and something will just… hit me. Then I build from there. Although I recently wrote one where the lyrics came first.”
“That’s fascinating. In acting, they talk about finding the emotional truth first then building the performance around that. Sounds like you do something similar with songs.”
I watch Micah’s face brighten as he and River dive into a discussion about creative processes, and I feel a warm flutter in my chest. It’s fun to see them connecting over their art.
The captain’s voice crackles over the intercom. “Ladies and gentlemen, we’re cleared for takeoff. Please ensure your seat belts are fastened.”
My stomach drops. We’re actually doing this. I’m flying to Vegas. Excitement zings through me, and I open the window even more to see the view.
The engines roar to life, and the jet starts moving. I press back into the leather seat as we taxi toward the runway, my heart hammering against my ribs. Through the window, the ground rushes past faster and faster until suddenly?—
We lift.
My stomach lurches as the plane jerks upward, and I squeeze my eyes shut. This feels nothing like I imagined. I thought it would be smooth, like riding in an elevator. Instead, it’s bumpy and tilting and completely terrifying.
“Oh no,” I whisper as the plane banks to the right, making my stomach swoop. That doesn’t feel right.
The jet shudders and drops what feels like a hundred feet. I gasp and dig my fingernails into the armrests so hard I’m probably leaving marks in the leather.
Warm fingers cover mine, gently prying them loose fromtheir death grip. “Hey.” Micah’s voice is calm and steady. “Are you okay, Cricket?”
I open my eyes to find his face inches from mine, his dark eyes full of concern. “I didn’t think flying would feel like this,” I whisper. “What if we crash? What if?—”
“We’re not going to crash,” he says firmly, his thumb stroking across my knuckles. “This is completely normal. The plane just hit a pocket of air that’s moving differently than the air around it. Think of it like… driving over a bump in the road, except we’re in the sky.”
The plane dives down again, and I imagine it’s plummeting to the earth. “It doesn’t feel normal.”
“I know it doesn’t,” Micah says, his voice gentle. “The first time I flew, I was convinced we were going to fall out of the sky. But look.” He gestures toward the front of the cabin, where Levi is laughing at something Claire said, completely unbothered. “We’re okay.”
From across the aisle, Skyler’s voice pipes up. “Are we riding on the bouncy clouds?”
Despite my terror, I can’t help but smile at her innocent question. Tobias chuckles and tries to explain turbulence. The plane lurches again, and I close my eyes.
Micah snickers. “Bouncy clouds. That’s cute.”
The adorable way Skyler sees things breaks through my fear, and I find myself giggling despite the continued movements.
Micah grins, still holding my hand. “Well, there you have it. Turbulence explained by a five-year-old.”
The plane levels out, and the shaking subsides to a gentle rocking motion. My heartbeat slowly returns to something resembling normal, though I don’t let go of Micah’s hand.
“Better?” he asks softly. His gray eyes are probing.Gently asking if I’ll be okay.
I nod, suddenly embarrassed by my freak-out. “Sorry. I didn’t know I was afraid of flying until… well, until we were flying.”
“Nothing to be sorry for,” River says. “My first time in a helicopter for my show, I threw up.”
“Really?”
“Really. And that was after they gave me motion sickness medication.”
Micah squeezes my hand. “The turbulence usually only lasts a few minutes while we climb to cruising altitude. Once we’re up high enough, it’s much smoother.”
Micah is right. After a few more moments, the ride becomes noticeably calmer. I finally release my breath and look around the cabin. No one else seems fazed by what just happened. Noah and Savannah are looking at something on his tablet, Levi and Claire are sharing earbuds and listening to music, and Skyler has moved on to coloring in a book. Kiera is sitting next to Violet, who is crocheting something, her bag of yarn on the floor next to her.
