Page 115 of Mountain Grump

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I face forward, keeping my hand on his thigh, and I try to relax.

The clouds are above us now.

I try so hard to relax.

The plane vibrates through a patch of rough air.

I try really hard to relax.

But it’s not possible.

So I fake it.

I keep my lips parted and my inhales quiet.

I trap my little backpack between my boots on the floor.

And I squeeze the hell out of my seat belt but try to keep the hand on Ethan’s thigh steady.

And we go lower.

Ethan stays silent.

The ground gets closer.

The forest spreads out on either side of us.

Mountains surround us.

I can make out rocks jutting from the water below on my side of the plane.

We’re going too fast.

It feels like we’re going too fast.

But I can’t close my eyes.

I didn’t look the first time, when we landed in Vegas. I didn’t look because I was scared. I didn’t watch Ethan land the plane.

But now, as the forest floor rushes up below us, I can’t look away.

I can’t close my eyes.

My mouth is painfully dry.

My palm aches where the seat belt is digging into it.

The plane tilts to the left. To the right.

My muscles tighten.

The ground is so close.

We tilt left, to the right again.

The ground is filling the windshield.

“Relax, Matilda.”

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