Page 6 of Long Shot

Her eyes lighting up, Gemma jumped right into her diatribe about what a day in her life looked like. Mac listened carefully, as if an excess of attention might make up for a lack of passion.

At least we can be friends.

“Empty all bags of electronics. Place them into a tray and keep moving.” A TSA worker shouted out from behind a wall of scanners.

It shocked Mac out of her haze. She scrambled to grab her things from her bag. Laptop. Charger. Phone. Headphones. Fitness watch. Placing each delicately into the tray in front of her, Mac watched the items get taken onto the belt.

The date from the week before had long since left Mac’s memory. Gemma was sweet, but neither she nor Mac had reached out after.Maybe I’m chasing a dead dream. A tennis machine is probably not the most enticing romantic partner.

It wasn’t the first time she considered it. This would be her third attempt at Roland Garros. The French Open was the start of the Grand Slam season, and if Mac couldn’t pass qualifiers, she would probably be blocked out the rest of the summer.

But she tried not to let the thought get away from her as she passed through security. Walking through the metal detector, she followed the directions diligently.

After she moved through, the mad dash to collect all of her items began. Throwing on her sweatshirt, Mac grabbed her trayof electronics from the end of the conveyor belt. She looped the headphones over her neck and tossed the laptop and accessories into her backpack. Wiggling the racket around in the main pocket, Mac tried to protect the strings.

The strings caught on the zipper, sending a cringe down Mac’s spine.Crap.Normally, she wouldn’t dare carry her racket around loose in a backpack. But Babs wasn’t willing to splurge on another bag for her, so Mac had to leave her racket bag at home. She carefully rearranged the bag, keeping the racket strings far from the zipper, and prayed that it hadn’t been a huge mistake.

Now that she was through security, Mac scanned the airport terminal for a place to grab some cheap food before sitting down to work.

With only an hour before boarding began, time was of the essence. She grabbed a mediocre, fast-food salad, sat down on the hard chairs in front of her gate, and pulled out her computer.

When she checked her inbox, there were a few emails. Most importantly, one titled:

COMPLETE BY END OF WEEK

Mac sighed. “Asshole.” She had told her boss where she was heading, but she was a freelancer, unable to take any paid time off. If this was her assignment, she would have no choice but to squeeze work in between training sessions and matches.

Looking up at the screen above her gate, Mac bit her lip.LGA → CDG. It would be a long flight to Paris followed by a train to Stade Roland Garros where the Open was hosted. Hopefully, Mac could get some WiFi along the way.

Before she knew it, her hour passed, and the flight attendant stepped up to the microphone to announce the boarding order.Mac grabbed her bags and made her way to the gate quickly, her backpack slung over one shoulder while she rolled her carry-on suitcase with the other hand.

Mac passed her ticket to the attendant with a smile and could have sworn she saw a blush creep onto her cheeks as she scanned and returned the pass. Mac couldn’t help but chuckle to herself.Maybe my chance at love isn’t dead after all.

Stepping to the side, the woman gestured for Mac to proceed down the long, cramped hallway. As she got closer to the plane, the tight space closed in. Her heart pounded in her chest as the weight of the next week flooded over her.

Eventually, the tunnel ended where another flight attendant waited at the doors of the plane. Mac found her seat, set her bag in the overhead compartment, and settled in her window seat with her backpack.

Mac had been looking forward to kicking back and watching a movie on the flight – she barely ever had time to watch a movie anymore – but the transcription gods had other plans for her. She needed to take advantage of every spare second if she wanted to finish on time.

Mac opened up her computer begrudgingly. It was an odd job, listening to hours of documentary footage and creating an easy-to-read transcript for an editing team, but it paid the bills. Plus, she wasn’t required to be in an office.

Once the plane was fully boarded and the doors sealed shut, a voice crackled over the speakers. “Thank you for flying National Airlines, the airline that brings you first class service at economy prices.”

The woman in the seat next to Mac nearly snorted at this. The announcer continued, “As we prepare for takeoff, we kindly ask that you turn off all electronic devices and keep them off for the remainder of the flight. Please feel free to enjoy a movie on thedeluxe HD TV built in to each seat. Headphones are available for purchase from any of our flight attendants.”

A passenger across the aisle tried clicking on the 4x5 inch “deluxe HD TV” in front of their seat, but it was completely nonfunctional. As they flagged down a flight attendant, the chipper voice crackled on. “Thank you again for choosing National Airlines. Have a worldy day!”

As an attendant zipped down the aisle to help Mac’s neighbor, Mac grabbed her attention. “Sorry to bother you. Is there any WiFi on this flight?”

The attendant offered a polite smile but shook her head. “Unfortunately, there’s only internet access for first class passengers.”

Mac leaned into the aisle, glaring down at the lounging passengers at the front of the plane. “Got it, thanks.”

As the attendant scurried off to field more complaints about broken TV screens, Mac sighed and leaned back in her seat.

It could be worse,she tried to convince herself.Just try to think of it as forced relaxation.

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