Friday, June 26, 2009
Chapter 3. The Flight


I snuggled deeply into Edward’s warm chest as I made myself comfortable for the long flight home. He was wearing a charcoal grey shirt that emphasised his perfect body structure. I began to draw loop de loops on his chest absentmindedly as I daydreamed. Edward chuckled as he rested his chin on my head. I was happily imagining the scene of Nessie welcoming us at the airport when I felt Edward’s body stiffened.

I was about to ask what’s wrong when the smell hit me - a sweet, floral smell. It reminded me of the sweet icky sap a Venus flytrap would emit to lure its victim to its deadly trap. Another vampire was on board this plane. I broke away from my warm cosy position as I lifted up my Gucci sunglasses that I wore to hide my now deep crimson eyes and surveyed my surroundings.

I spotted her, three rows down the next aisle. She was about five foot three, wearing a long black overcoat that hid most of her pale white skin, sporting jet black hair in a short bob cut. Her eyes were covered with sunglasses, probably with the same reason as mine.

A growl started to build in my chest. It was the defensive vampire nature that I had in me. Edward stopped me with a hush.

“Bella, it’s alright. Calm down, she’s not going to hurt anyone. I can see it in her thoughts.” Edward reassured me while he pulled me back into his warm embrace. I relaxed, knowing that Edward was probably right. I continued to daydream as I removed my shield to show Edward my thoughts. He chuckled and smiled adoringly at me.

We stayed like this, a pair of inseparable Siamese twins for hours. Suddenly, Edward stiffened again. Panic began to fill my body as thousands of questions raced my mind. Is the mysterious vampire going to start her killing spree? What can we do to help these poor humans? Would I end up being her accomplice once I start to smell the delicious scent of human blood?

No! I thought to myself. I cannot kill these poor innocent humans. I had a clean record as a newborn, and I was as proud of it as Edward was of me. I will not do anything to risk it; which only left me with one other option. To strike before the vampire start her killing spree. In my mind, plots started to hatch, ways to deal with her quickly and silently, before any human could notice what’s happening.

“Bella, love. Do you trust me?” Edward asked gently as he began to hug me closer.

“Huh?” was all I could manage. I was confused by his question. What was he going to do? Sit here and restrain me while we watched the other vampire hunted?

No! I will not let that happen! I thought as I struggled to break loose from his tight hold on me.

“Bella, love! Stop! Calm down. We’ll be alright!” he whispered into my ear. I stopped struggling as I replayed his words in my mind. What did he mean by that?

“Bella, the plane is going to crash. I’ve just heard the pilot’s thoughts. We just flew into some nasty storm clouds. This plane will not make it to its destination.” Edward loosened his grip as I processed his words. I slumped back into his chest.

“Don’t worry, love. We will be able to survive this as immortals. But I can’t say the same for the rest of the passengers.” Edward murmured sadly.

Just then, the plane began to rock wildly and the seatbelt light flickered on. A voice boomed over the plane’s PA system.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We are experiencing some technical difficulties right now. Please do not panic and follow the instructions given by the flight attendants.”

I watched silently as the flight attendants tried to reassure the passengers. The head of the flight attendant was going through the safety procedures in case the plane had to make an emergency landing. Panic filled the faces of the passengers around me. An old lady sitting across the aisle from me had her head lowered and her hands clasped together, praying silently. A couple next to the old lady hugged each other tightly and whispered their last goodbye to each other. A baby from rows behind ours started crying.

I buried my face into Edward’s chest. I could not look a second longer. It was too much for me to bear. Edward began to stroke my hair and hummed my favourite lullaby, trying to reassure me.

Just as everyone was beginning to prepare for the worse, the plane stopped rocking. I looked up as Edward pulled up the blind of the window next to him. What I saw shocked me. The sky was clear, without a single cloud in sight.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. The technical difficulties had been resolved. We will be touching down at Seattle airport in an hour.” Cheers and applause began to erupt all around me.

I stared at Edward with a confused look. I watched as he strained to listen to the pilot’s thoughts.

“It’s over, love. We’re going to be safe.” Edward confirmed with a smile.

“But...but... how... what happened?” I was lost. One minute the plane was going to crash and the next, we were out of danger. Edward fell silent and focused again.

“It was the other vampire who did it. She can manipulate the weather. Amazing.” Edward said after a moment, amused. I shifted my attention to the mysterious vampire. Her eyes were closed; she had a small satisfied smile on her lips. I made a mental note to thank her after the plane had touched down.

When the plane touched down, I began to sift through the faces of the crowd to look for her. However, I did not get my chance to express my gratitude to our mysterious saviour. She simply vanished into the crowd.

“Momma! Daddy!” Nessie screamed and ran towards us. I scooped her up and gave her a tight hug. Edward watched our little reunion and smiled.

“Nessie!” I cooed. “Have you been good? Momma bought lots of stuff for you!”

“Momma! Nessie has been really good! Aunt Rose took Nessie to a beach on Saturday...” and Nessie began to relate her adventures to me as we walked towards the car. Behind me, I could hear Edward relate our “near-death” experience on the plane to Carlisle and Esme.

Once in the car, I refocused my attention to my little angel, who began another tale of her recent shopping trip with Aunt Alice. I smiled as I looked at Nessie’s face that was beaming with excitement.

“We’re home! Welcome back Momma and Daddy!” Nessie said with a huge grin. Once we got out of the car, I saw a huge banner hanging over the door. “Welcome back Edward and Bella!” it read. Another welcoming party by Alice.

I slid my hand into Edward’s while carrying Nessie with another. We stood there, looking at our beautiful house and at the party decorations Alice had all over the place. For once, I did not grimace at the sight of a party. Because I know, I’m truly home.

***

3:55 PM