Page 51 of I Hear You

“Just scoot over, Mads.”

His expression is soft and pleading. Not having enough energy to argue, I scoot to the middle of the bench seat. He wraps an arm around me and pulls me to his side. I let my head fall, and it lands perfectly on his shoulder. Even though I’m still angry with him, hearing him call me Mads causes a fluttering in my stomach. Traitorous hormones. His thumb brushing up and down on my arm causes goose bumps and makes my whole body tingle.

We drive this way for another fifteen minutes, not saying anything, when we finally pull off the main road. We pull in past a gate and I sit up, looking around and trying to determine where we are. There are several airplanes and large metal buildings, but this doesn’t look like any normal airport I’ve ever seen. We’re driving right up to one of the airplanes, a large white one that has a set of stairs down and the door open. He parks the truck a short walk away from it.

Henry reaches across me and grabs my backpack and a small duffle I didn’t notice before from the floorboard. His hair is just beneath my nose now. I can smell his shampoo and I inhale, missing the scent as soon as he sits up. He gets out of the truck and extends his hand to me. I take it and scoot out after him. He doesn’t let go of my hand when my feet land on the ground, but I don’t mind. It’s nice having someone to help me feel anchored right now.

As we’re walking toward the plane, Emmett appears in the airplane's doorway and comes down the stairs. What is he doing here? They do one of those bro-slap half hug things, but Henry never releases my hand.

“The pilot is in there, ready when you are. Just go up front and tell him where you need to go. He’ll find the closest airport and then wait to take you home when you’re ready.”

“Thank you so much. And, thank you parents for me. I owe them–again,” Henry says.

“You owe them nothing. You owe me a beer,” he laughs but cuts it short when he notices me.

I probably look as if I’ve been to hell and back by the nervous smile he gives me. Plus, he hasn’t looked at my boobs once.

“I hope your mom’s okay, Madison,” he tells me.

My voice catches in my throat. I just force a small smile and nod, hoping he’ll understand my appreciation for his sincerity. Emmett surprises me by giving me a hug. It’s not handsy. It’s warm and friendly and tight. It feels as if maybe he needed this hug more for himself than for me. Emmett releases me and Henry takes my hand again, leading me onto the plane.

Chapter twenty-four

Henderson

I’mflyingbytheseat of my damn pants here. When I got the text from Taylor, I shoved some clothes in a duffel bag and broke every speed limit to get to their dorm room. I knew if I called Emmett, he would help me. Having a best friend whose parents own a jet is a privilege I am so grateful for right now.

Madison hasn’t said a word since we got on the plane. I’ve got her settled in a seat and put our bags on another. I’m about to go talk to the pilot and tell him we’re ready to leave when I realize I don’t know where we’re heading. I don’t know where home is for Madison.

I squat down in front of Madison. She’s looking straight ahead, not saying a word.

“Mads, where am I taking you? What hospital is your mom at?”

She looks at me and I notice her lip is trembling slightly. I want so badly to cover her mouth with mine and hold her in my arms.

“Hope Hospital, it’s in Oceanside, California,” she says, looking at me finally.

I give her hand a quick squeeze before leaving her to talk to the pilot. When I come back, she’s brought her knees up to her chest in the seat, her arms wrapped around her legs. I slide into the seat next to her and get comfortable. The pilot announces for us to put our seatbelts on so we can depart. I put mine on, but Madison hasn’t moved.

“Madison, we’re getting ready to take off. You need to put your seatbelt on.”

She doesn’t answer me. She’s pale and there are little beads of sweat on her forehead.

“Madison, are you okay? Did you get a text about your Mom? Is she okay?” I ask, trying to decipher why she looks so scared.

“I’ve never been on an airplane,” she confesses.

I have to bite back a laugh because I don’t think laughing when she looks absolutely terrified would win me any points right now. She looks incredibly cute though, like a cat who's seeing the outside world for the first time and doesn’t know what to do about its vastness.

I reach over her and buckle her seatbelt around her. Then gently take her hand in mine. She turns to look at me now. She looks at me, at our hands, and back up at me with a look that saysI’m scared, so I’m letting you do this, but I’m still fucking pissed.

“Statistically, airplanes are one of the safest ways to travel. We are going to be fine, I promise,” I say.

I can tell we’ve just been making our way to the runway by the sensations of the moving airplane. We start to take off. Madison squeezes my hand tighter and pinches her eyes closed.

“Babe, what can I do to help you right now?” I ask her, brushing a piece of her hair out of her face.

Her hair is so soft, and I’ve been dying to run my fingers through it, but if I do, I won’t be able to stop myself from wanting to do more and that’s not what she needs right now.

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