I could see the mix of anger, sadness, and uncertainty in his eyes. He needed some security and for all the worries in his head to be extinguished. Ryder needed me the most right now.
“Come on. Let’s get out of this wind.” I quickly shook Oliver and D’Andre’s hands as I said, “Thank you for getting to him and keeping him safe.”
“Happy to help,” D’Andre said. He glanced at Ryder—who was staring at the jet—and tapped the side of his head. “Might want to get him looked over.”
“Especially his head. He may have a concussion,” Oliver added. “We didn’t let him sleep for very long periods of time.”
“Thank you. I’ll get him looked over as soon as we arrive in New York.”
With my arm around Ryder’s shoulders, I guided him toward the jet. I had him climb the steps in front of me, that way if he became dizzy, I’d at least be there for him to fall back on.I’d always be there for him to fall back on.
I showed him to the oversized seat near the window and sat beside him. The cabin attendant came over with a plush blanket and a bottle of water. I opened the blanket, and as I draped it over his shoulders, he leaned forward to make room for the blanket between his back and the seat. I tucked one side of the blanket across his chest and around his shoulder and then pulled the other side across his chest to the opposite side. It was probably the securest way to wrap someone in a blanket. While I had always been aware of that procedure, until now, I’d never felt inclined to wrap someone in this fashion.
“Are you thirsty?”
His head rolled to the side to face me and then he glanced down at his torso.
“If I was, I don’t have any arms.”
I smiled, then laughter escaped my mouth. I flagged the cabin attendant down and asked for a straw. I unscrewed thecap from the water bottle while I waited for the straw, and once it arrived, I removed it from the paper and dropped it into the bottle. I held the bottle toward Ryder, and he leaned forward to sip. Without an ounce of guilt, I watched with lewdness as his lips wrapped around the thin straw. A thrill of excitement raced through my body as I imagined how Ryder would grow to love his time at Omnia Academy. All that fun would come in due time.
“Try to rest some,” I told him. “I’m here to listen, though, if you feel like talking.”
“Rest sounds good,” he replied. The stress of last night was evident on his face, the puffy skin under his tired eyes showing his exhaustion.
I left him alone so he could doze while I read some news on my phone. About three-quarters of the way into the flight, Ryder’s head had slumped to the side, hitting me on the shoulder. The surprise pulled my attention from my phone to look at him. I craned my neck some and saw his eyelids were closed.
Since he was already leaning against me, I took advantage of the chance to provide him with some much-needed non-verbal support. Without giving too much thought about it, I wrapped my arm around his blanket-clad shoulders and gave his upper arm a reassuring squeeze. Ryder jerked awake and pushed himself off my shoulder and away from me. With startled wide eyes and narrowed eyebrows, he stared cautiously at me as he pulled his hand from beneath the blanket. He was on guard, as if he needed to defend himself… Or perhaps, protect himself.
I’d done this many times to my mentees, though none of them ever had the reaction Ryder did. And quickly I was reminded that he was very different from other Omnia students who mostly came from stable, caring families. I realized my error in offering comfort to Ryder when he hadn’t known itwas coming. When awake, alert, and aware, Ryder was okay with being touched. Clearly, it wasn’t the case when he wasn’t expecting it. I made a mental note to not touch him unless he was awake.
“Relax, Ryder. I apologize for startling and waking you. You leaned over onto my shoulder, and I was just offering some support and comfort,” I explained. “You’re always welcome to lean on me; emotionally or physically.”
Though he relaxed, he leaned back against the seat rather than leaning against me. For most of the flight, Ryder slept, but he woke up when we had about forty-five minutes until we landed in New York. I forced my face to remain calm as I watched him wince as he sat up straight and stretched.
“Where are you feeling the most discomfort?” I asked as he settled back against the seat.
“I don’t even know,” he mumbled.
It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him that what he said wasn’t an answer that he could use again. The academy was strict. If a question is asked, they expected a valid answer. Even if the answer is wrong, they would rather hear a wrong answer than see a shoulder shrug with the response ofI don’t knowto accompany it. From years of being a mentor, my experience told me that every moment could be a teaching moment. But I also knew when it was too much. Right now would have been too much and could have very easily put a wall between us. Teaching would come, but not right now.
I pressed the button on the side of the armrest to call for the flight attendant. When they came over, I asked for a bottle of water and some ibuprofen.
“If you have any snacks, can you bring them over too, please?”
“Yes, sir.”
The flight attendant was gone just for a minute and quickly returned with everything. I set the bottle of water on the table in front of Ryder and put the packet of Advil beside it. The flight attendant held a basket of various snacks for us to select what we wanted.
“Go ahead. Pick whatever you’d like.”
Ryder eyed his choices and then grabbed the pack of Oreos.
“Thank you,” he said as the flight attendant smiled before they left us again.
“Eat a few of those cookies before you take the Advil. I don’t want you to take it on an empty stomach.”
Without a word, he opened the package and scarfed down three of the cookies before he tore open the foil package of Advil and tossed them into his mouth. He chased the ibuprofen with some water and then resumed eating the rest of the cookies.
