“Yeah. I’m just going to the ladies' room,” she replied, hoping her voice didn’t betray her nerves and she grabbed her purse and fled, leaving the other two behind with raised eyebrows.
What was she doing? Going on this crazy quest?
In the ladies’ room, she stared at herself in the mirror that stretched the width of the four wash basins in the single counter, her face pale, eyes blown wide with alarm.
“Are you alright, honey?” asked a cleaner, who was mopping the floor behind her and giving her worried looks. “D’youwant me to fetch somebody?”
Aelanna didn’t want to make a fuss. She forced a smile. “No, I’m good, nervous of flying.” She nodded vigorously. “I’ve taken a pill, just waiting for it to kick in.”
That seemed to get the woman to back off. “If you’re sure,” she said doubtfully, picked up her mop and bucket and exited the washroom, leaving Aelanna alone with her thoughts.
She didn’t have to do this. It wasn’t too late to back out.
They had been allowed to take a large suitcase and a carry-on. Not that she had much, but she’d thrown all her precious personal things into the big case, along with her clothes. As she was having to move out anyway, she didn’t have much choice. Her photos of happier times, a Disneyland snow globe of Cinderella’s castle that a kind foster father had given her, her school certificates, a few childhood toys, stuff she'd collected when she was working, one gift from Brad, his team tee shirt.
There were no perishables, liquids or creams allowed for fear of contamination. Strictly clothes and shoes. Before going on the spaceship, Dapkey had told them that the items would be irradiated in the suitcase before loading and that the girls themselves would undergo a decontamination procedure too, although the manager had been vague about it and Aelanna wasn’t sure what to expect.
Maybe shewasoverreacting. Maybe she should get out of New York and make a fresh start, find a new job in a new city. She would move to Tampa, Florida. She had visited there once. When she was thirteen, her then foster parents had relatives there and they took her with them for a week. The relatives were quite well-off and had a house in Tampa Bay. She had liked it; the beach, the waterpark, the climate. She could find a new job and an apartment and go swimming every day.
The USA was a big country; she didn’t have to go to another galaxy to escape memories of Brad. The world — or the U.S. — was her oyster. She didn’t owe anybody anything. Shewas a free agent. She could go to LA, Las Vegas or San Diego.
Yes!She would grab her big case when they landed, say goodbye to the girls, and stay a few days wherever they ended up, book into a motel, and find a job in any of those cities on her target list. She’d make it work somehow.
She splashed her face with cold water, dried it with a paper towel and went out to join her friends.
“Are you okay? You’ve been gone ages,” Kora asked, studying Aelanna with apprehension.
Aelanna nodded and sat down. Her coffee was cold.
“Here, let me get you a new one,” offered Nayli. Aelanna stopped Nayli rising with a hand on her arm.
“No, I don’t want it.” She took a deep breath. “Guys, have you ever... Have you... lost your nerve, at all? Do you want to chicken out?” She looked them squarely in the eyes. Nayli appeared confused then worried; Kora looked sympathetic.
“Oh, babe, we understand if you decide not to go, it’s a big step,” Kora said.
Relief washed through Aelanna.
“I thought you’d be mad at me. I’ll miss you guys, though, of course I will.”
“We’ll miss you too,” commiserated Nayli, face clouded with regret. She leaned closer and patted Aelanna’s hand resting on the laminate table. “This is goodbye, then?”
“I’ll come along for the ride. I’m not ready to give up my friends just yet.”
“What will you do?” Kora asked.
An air of sadness infused all three of them, and Aelanna heaved a sigh.
“I can’t go back to Queens. I quit my job and I already quit my apartment there, I thought I’d be moving in with Brad. I think I'll stay in a motel for a few days and look for a job in Tampa, Florida.”
Kora looked appalled. “Tampa? Oh, babe, a New York girl going to sweaty Florida... ”
“Sweaty? Have you been to Tampa?” Aelanna asked,defensive. “I have. And I liked it.”
“I hope things work out for you, sweetheart,” added Nayli. “We’ll miss you like crazy. It’s the last time we’ll see each other. Forever.”
Forever sounded final to Aelanna’s ears. A long time. A life-changing moment. The three of them had made life-changing decisions.
No going back.
