Page 7 of Fear of Flying

“Oh god, um... would you believe I forgot the joke?” Zach looked half-amused and half-mortified. “I... man, my brain really does not function great on this much anxiety. You’ll have to just forgive my awkwardness and forget you ever met me once you step off the plane.”

“I don’t think I want to do that.” Shit, had his voice sounded all raspy and intense? It had, hadn’t it?

“Forgive me?”

“Forget you.” Definitely raspy. And his chest felt funny, too.

“Oh, uh . . . me too—neither. Me neither.”

Drew’s face suddenly felt hot. “Uh, you know, because you seem like a really cool guy. It’d be a shame to erase you from my memory. Though... I’m not sure you can say the same about me. I mean, we’ve known each other for how long now?” He checked his watch. “Thirty minutes or so, and how much of that time have I spent rambling on about Superman? Honestly, no one outside of my internet friends on Discord has let me go on about the Man of Steel that long—you know, even them, they might just scroll on past what I type and... God. I’m... I’ll shut up now.” Oh god, what was wrong with him? He could feel his entire face flushing with embarrassment, but when he focused back on Zach’s face, all he saw was a warm, amused smile that made his stomach flip again.

This was... He couldn’t... Drew didn’t understand what the heck was going on. At all.

This was why he tried not to socialize face-to-face. This was why his only real friends were people online whom he’d never met in real life. This was why he spent his precious little free time with the dogs at the animal shelter. He was clearly inept at socializing outside of what his job required.

In court in front of a judge and jury and opposing counsel? He excelled. In a conference room with two people spitting vitriol across the table at each other and their respective lawyers? No sweat. One adorably gorgeous seatmate who was terrified of flying? Apparently that turned him into a rambling fool. With butterflies in his stomach. Butterflies!

Thankfully, the flight attendants interrupted then, asking if they wanted a snack and a drink. Drew sat back in his seat as Zach ordered a Jack and Coke and then managed a tight smile as the flight attendant shifted their attention to him. Still feeling a bit caught off guard, Drew couldn’t really think to make any sort of decision, so he just said he’d have the same as Zach. Then he leaned to his side to grab his wallet out of his back pocket.

He fumbled slightly as he opened it, pulled out his usual debit card, and handed it to the flight attendant, all while trying to ignore the tingling and heat in his arm from when his leaning had put it in contact with Zach’s shoulder.

“I’ll get both of them,” Drew said before he even realized that the words were coming out of his mouth.

“Ah, um, thanks,” Zach said, a bit of confusion in his voice.

Drew couldn’t help but smile when he looked over at Zach. “You’re welcome.” It felt like there were a million butterflies fluttering around in his chest and stomach now.

God, what was this?

A thousand thoughts ran through his mind as the flight attendant processed his card and then handed it back to him, and he also couldn’t help but look around them, hoping no one was the wiser. God, it almost felt like his attraction to the man sitting next him was written all over his face. Could people tell?

Physical attraction had never been like this for him. Warmth and sparks and tingling and butterflies... those were the things of books and movies, right? Not real life. Never real life. But god, this... was actually happening, wasn’t it?

He smiled at Zach again, unable to stop his eyes from flitting to the slight dimple in Zach’s cheek. He wondered if there was a matching one on the other side.

Zach smiled back, and the blush Drew thought he saw rising in Zach’s face again made Drew’s heart flip-flop in his chest.

Drew tried to shake himself mentally. This didn’t seem like real life. It was some sort of fairy-tale fantasy... He glanced out of the corner of his eye again at Zach—Zach and his dark, slightly curly hair and blue eyes and strong-cut jaw...

Nope. Nope, he shouldn’t go there. He let out a deep breath and gave Zach a wobbly smile. He did not, under any circumstances, need to compare the attractive man next to him to Clark Kent or his alter ego. Nope.

Because half of Drew’s love for the superhero was related to the love story between Lois and Clark. And if he let his mind even start to wander...

Nope.

“Nope, what?” Zach asked.

Drew sat there, fully aware that his mouth was hanging open but somehow unable to do anything about it. Had he really just spoken out loud and not even realized it? What was wrong with him?

“I, um... sorry, my mind was drifting... to—to a w-work thing or something. It’s been a grueling week for me—long hours and not enough sleep.” Maybe that was what was wrong with him. Lack of sleep. Yep, that would account for all the butterflies and tingling and inability to speak coherently. Actually, maybe he was sick, coming down with something. That would also explain the flashes of heat that kept flooding through him at random moments that definitely weren’t correlated perfectly with Zach’s smiles or laughter.

“So you were in New York for work too?” Zach asked, interrupting Drew’s dangerously wandering thoughts.

Drew nodded, grateful for the change in subject. If only his nervous system could catch up to the rest of him.

“I was there for a work conference and for a few meetings afterward,” Zach added. His eyes seemed to search Drew’s face and body language, and Drew thought he was probably wondering what the heck was wrong.

“Ah, fun stuff. Or at least conferences can be sometimes...” Drew offered lamely.

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