Page 35 of Come Fly with Me

Carrie and I chat for a bit before she stops short of finishing a sentence, her eyes focused on something behind me, and when I turn around, I see Jake wandering aimlessly, but still with an air of confidence about him.

“Over here,” I call, flagging him over with my hand, and while I can tell he lets out a sigh of relief, his shoulders less tense now, he still has a huge smile on his face.

“Wait, he belongs to you?” Carrie asks, her hands on her hips, her eyebrows going up in surprise.

“I’m not sure I’d say he belongs to me, but he’s a friend. Another pilot I know who I asked to come out here today and help out.”

“Well, I’d suggest…” Carrie starts, but she’s cut short by Charlie tugging her away as Jake walks up. I introduce him to Charlie and Carrie, and we chat for a few seconds as the remainder of the girls arrive.

We have a total of six girls signed up for this session, but when we first started, our classes ran upwards of ten girls. We ended up having to cut it to a maximum of six because we just couldn’t get in the flying time with that many. The plus that came out of it was that we now run several different sessions rather than just one. It became so popular that Charlie reached out to some of his trainer pilots and brought them on as teachers. We’re now running twelve six-week courses a year, which far exceeds our original expectations.

When the last of the girls arrives, Charlie and Carrie disappear back to their respective offices, and I get started introducing Jake.

“Alright, girls, we have a special guest today. His name is Jake Campbell, and he’s a first officer for Crescent Airways. He’s going to be helping out today, which means more flying time for all of you.”

They let out a riotous cheer, and I laugh a little as Jake goes around to each girl and shakes hands and asks their names. But that’s where the excitement comes to a halt, and the awkwardness slips in.

“So tell me,” Jake starts, and what comes out of his mouth next tells me he hasn’t recently spent time with any kids, which doesn’t surprise me. Our careers don’t give us the opportunity to hang out with nieces and nephews very often, and any interaction with kids on our flights is minimal. “Who’s a fan of One Directions, huh? Harry Styles, am I right?”

Every one of my girls stares at him with emotionless expressions on their faces, and I can almost read their thoughts. He sounds like their embarrassing father, and they’re trying to process what to say to him.

Sofia is the first to speak up, and I put a hand over my mouth, trying to stifle the laugh I feel building because I know this is going to be interesting.

Sofia is twelve years old and was born with an on-point resting bitch face and an attitude to match. She’s a tiny little thing with long dark hair and dark brown eyes. She packs a punch you don’t see coming.

She’s the youngest of five and the only girl of immigrants who arrived in the US poor and looking for work. Her father is a landscaper, and her mother is a line cook. They’re hard workers and deeply devoted to their family, and without my program funding, Sofia wouldn’t be able to be here. Her goal is to one day become a fighter pilot, and because of my program, she will do it.

But right now, she’s here to give Jake a hard time, and I’m dying to watch it.

She gives a couple of long, slow blinks before shooting me a side-eye that basically screams “what the fuck”, and then she lays into him.

“First of all, it’s One Direction, not One Directions. No ‘s’ on the end. And it’s clear you aren’t up to date on your pop culture because One Direction,” she pauses emphasizing the “tion” at the end of the word, “broke up years ago, and Harry Styles’ solo career didn’t take off like it should have.”

“Oh-kay,” Jake says, looking over at me for help, and I shrug my shoulders. His hands are now shoved into the pockets of his jeans, and he shifts a little, rocking back on his heels. He got himself into this mess. It would’ve been so easy had he just tried talking to them about flying. But it’s super cute watching him get all flustered, and I commend his attempt.

“We’re here to learn about becoming pilots in a career dominated by men. Did you know that only seven percent of pilots are women? And even worse, they’re paid far less than their male counterparts,” Sofia says to him, her hands now on her hips as she stares him down.

“I have heard that somewhere,” Jake responds, his lips twitching up in the corners as he turns to me, adding, “You train them well.”

“Alright, girls, enough. We aren’t here to give Jake a hard time. He gets enough of that from me.” I look over and wink at him. His smile is bright, his eyes practically sparkling with happiness, and I feel it too.

With the girls now walking ahead of us, we all make our way over to the hangar that houses our practice planes.

I reach over and give Jake a pat on the back. “Nice going. Way to break the ice there.”

“The ice in that hangar could’ve taken down the Titanic. No one had a chance,” he jokes back as he slips his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him and pressing a kiss to my temple. “It’s good to see you.”

“We just saw each other.”

“Yeah, but I wasn’t sure when it would happen again.”

Twelve

Jake

Inside the hangar, I watch as Taylor takes the six girls through the pre-flight safety checklist. She’s meticulous and thorough and exactly how you need to be, especially when training. I don’t say anything, just stand back and watch her in action, admiring the way she runs things. It’s clear these girls have a lot of respect for her too, their attention unwavering as they listen to her instructions.

“Alright,” she eventually says, turning to smile at me. “We have two pilots here today, so that means two girls up at once.”

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