Grady
started the engines and taxied out to a clear area for take off. Tuyen was
sitting beside him and she sat with Astrid in the back. “Well here we go.” Xaria
smiled at Astrid as the plane surged forward. She was getting used to flying
but takeoffs and landings still scared the heck out of her. She had to put on a
show of bravery though because Astrid was terrified when they left the ground
and climbed into the sky. She took Astrid’s hand and squeezed.
“Oh
damn that was fucking fun,” Astrid lied to hide the terror she felt. Xaria was
sure Astrid words were a lie and shook her head at the cuss word. Tuyen you’ve got to watch your mouth and
quit letting Astrid learn cuss words otherwise Elof is going to kick all of our
butts.
After
they’d leveled off and flown for some distance Tuyen got out of her seat and
came to the rear. “Grady wants you hon,” Tuyen said to her.
Standing
up, she went to the pilot cockpit. When she got there Grady told her to sit in
the copilot seat. Following his request, she took a seat, being ever so careful
not to touch anything. In a smart-alec way she spoke to Grady, “So what ya want
babe? We can’t make love, you’re flying the plane besides we have company?”
Grady
grinned at her. “Time for you to start learning what all these gauges and
controls are Xar.” Smiling at the use of Xar
she remembered that Tuyen had decided the three of them needed nicknames
for each other. Xar for herself, Gra for Grady and Tu for Tuyen.
Without
waiting, he began schooling her on what the different gauges indicated. She was
smart and learned quickly. In a few hours, she knew what most of them meant.
She knew what the controls did and what affect they had on the plane.
“Very
good Xar. You learn fast,” Grady complimented her. “I guess there’s only one
test left.”
He’d
coaxed her into putting her hands on the stick earlier under the pretense of
feeling it move as he made minor adjustments from his. Next, he flipped the
autopilot off and nosed the plane into gentle decent. “She‘s all yours Xar. By
the way you’re headed toward the ground.”
“What?”
she cried out in panic. Jerking the stick back toward her, she over compensating
and put the plane into a steep climb. “Damn you Grady. Shit, damn, fucking
damn. Oh shit––t,” A steady stream of cuss words tumbled from her mouth as she
first over compensated one way and then the other. Sucking in her lower lip,
she bit down on it to silence the cuss words pouring from her mouth. She
accidently turned the wheel adding a banking condition to her problems. She
over corrected for this too and sent the plane banking the other way.
Although
he was watching very closely and she was certain he would react quickly, if
they got in serious trouble, Grady was roaring with laughter. She was too busy concentrating
on the controls to give him the look of anger she was feeling right now.
“Damn
you Grady. Take over these controls right now before I put us the drink.”
Only when she heard her own voice booming from
the passenger compartment did she remember seeing Grady toggle the PA buttons
and open the talk circuit.
Her
cussing and his laughter were being broadcast into the rear cabin. Grady was
not the only one laughing. Distantly she heard Tuyen’s laughter from behind. Even
Astrid was laughing, as the plane dipped and rolled. She was certain that Tuyen
had warned Astrid, what was going to happen. There was no doubt in her mind
that this was not spontaneous. Her mates had been sitting up here plotting
this.
Now,
finally, Grady began to instruct her. “Watch the little gauge in front of you.
Ease back on the stick. That’s it. See how the little plane on the gauge reacts
when you do? Turn the wheel slowly until the wings of the plane on the gauge
are level. That’s my girl.” He encouraged when she followed his instructions.
Finally,
she got the hang of gentle movements to the stick and eventually leveled the
plane out. When the plane was cruising level once more and on course, she set
the autopilot. Drenched in sweat, she sat back in relief. She flashed a
venomous glare at Grady that was hot enough to melt the paint off the bulkhead.
“Grady you’re a fucking asshole.”
Between
laughs, he answered, “I’m sorry Xar but watching you struggle with the plane
was so damn funny.”
Now
that the plane was flying steady, again Tuyen appeared in the doorway. She was
laughing so hard that tears were streaming from her eyes.
“Grady
you suck. You scared the crap out of me damn you,” she shouted.
“I’m
sorry Xar but in my defense it wasn’t all my idea.” He glanced back at Tuyen.
She
looked back at Tuyen. “I’m sure. I’m sure both of you were in on the plot. You
suck too. You know you could have given me a damn heart attack?”
Grady
and Tuyen broke out in another fit of laughter.
“Get
up here and sit down Tu, I need to go pee.” Standing, she glared at both of
them then stalked off and slammed the lavatory door closed behind her. When she
returned she punched each in the shoulder and smiled. “You’re both shits and I
owe you… Big time.” She huffed, and then spinning on her heel, went into the
rear. A little later, she returned but this time she brought each of them a
glass of water. “This is much more than either of you deserve and I’m still mad
at you. At the same time I want you to remember that I love you too. In the
words Tuyen has taught me, paybacks are a
bitch.”
No comments:
Post a Comment