Celebrity Crush

Chapter 42

Kimi and I were sitting in the waiting area for our flights. Kimi was flipping through a magazine she bought for her flight. I chuckled at her as she just flipped through the pages not actually looking at any of the pages.

“So are you excited about going to your dad's for Thanksgiving?”

She sat the book in her lap and shrugged.

“I don't know really. Things between us are awkward since the divorce. He doesn't even see me most of the time so things are just weird. Thank goodness he hasn't remarried, just dates. He can't hold a relationship very long.”

Sometimes it amazed me about how much our fathers were alike.

“I understand, Kimi. Hell my father remarried and I don't get to see him. He didn't even come in the room at the hospital to see me for god’s sakes. Your mother was talking to your father quite a bit on the phone when you were in the hospital. He couldn't make it but my father did. He just refused to come in the room to actually see me for once.”

Kimi sighed.

"Flight to Jackson, Mississippi is now boarding."

I sighed.

“That would be me.”

I stood to my feet as well as Kimi. She pulled her shades to her forehead and enveloped me in a hug.

“Be safe Laura. I know combined with Sarah, your mom, Robert, and your family, things will get kind of hectic. Just call me if you need me alright?”

I nodded hugging her back with same force. We pulled away after a few minutes and I grabbed my bags with me.

Kimi gave me a smile as I walked off toward the line to give in my ticket. The woman at the stand was taking tickets and giving smiles to everyone. I was carrying my gray handbag and the smaller case from the suitcases.

It was my turn next and I handed her my ticket. She smiled at me and looked over my ticket and then handed it back to me.

“Have a great flight mam.”

“Thanks.”

I walked down the small walk way toward the plane. There was a small line when I got to the plane itself and waited for a few minutes. I got inside the plane and showed the woman my ticket.

“First class is right through there.”

She pointed to the side and I took my ticket walking in that direction. I looked down at my ticket and found my seat was a window seat. I placed my small suitcase bag in the overhead compartment and then took my seat. I let out a breath I had been holding for some time. I hated flying with passion. The fear of flying got even worse after 9/11. I know the odds of that happening again and especially on a flight I was on were very slim but that didn't stop the butterflies in my stomach.

I fastened my seat belt and leaned against my seat. I decided to open up the window until the flight began. Suddenly someone stopped at my seat. I turned my head and saw a guy around my age maybe older was looking down at me with this smirk on his face.

I rolled my eyes and then ignored him. He started adding his own things to the overhead compartment and took the seat beside me. Great I was going to have to sit beside him the entire flight.

“Hey my name's Gabe, Gabe Collins. What's your name?”

It was then that I decided to at least talk to him. I mean if I was going to get through this flight than we should at least be on good circumstances.

“My name's Laura, Laura May.”

His smirk widened.

“Do you think after this flight you would want to go out sometime Laura?”

I sighed rolling my eyes.

“Sorry I can't. I have to go to my grams house once I land. Also I have a boyfriend so I am off limits.”

His smirk got smaller until it was just an uneasy smile. He turned his head away from me. I saw the rest of the people taking their seats. I could feel my hands tightening from nerves. I hated when my hands started going numb, it was so embarrassing.

I watched the attendants started closing the doors and making sure everyone had their belts on. I heard the door lock and then we heard the pilot.

“Hello everyone welcome. My name is John and I will be flying you today. All I ask is that you keep your belts on until the light is turned off. We will be making our ascend shortly.”

Everyone was fastening their seat belts quickly. The attendants went to their small seats and fastened up.

“Are you alright over there Laura?”

I turned my head toward Gabe and tried to give him a nice smile but I think it came out as more of a grimace. He gave me a smirk once again, this time it held something other than being hit on.

“Don't worry Laura. The chance of actually going down is very slim. I should know, I used to hate flying, but now I am used to it. I still get those butterflies during the takeoff and landing but they are much better.”

I gave him a sincere smile. Suddenly the plane began moving and my breath caught in my throat. I seriously hated flying.

Gabe's grip on my hand tightened as the plane titled up and we were in the sky.

“See no big deal. Where's the boyfriend anyway?”

I sighed, this was complicated. The thing that saved me was it being the holidays and all.

I smiled, “Oh he's with his family for the holidays of course. His family was inviting a bunch of relatives over this year so he couldn't come to mine.”

He smiled and nodded his head. This was much easier than I thought; lying to someone I didn't know. He would never know who Robert really was so there was no reason to hide much. I just had to tweak a few things and it worked out perfectly.

Gabe was a nice guy throughout the ride. He got me laugh when I was nervous as the plane would jump from turbulence. Overall he made my experience this time much better than the time before.

A few hours later and we landed. I was safely on the ground and I breathed a sigh of relief. Gabe chuckled as he stood to his feet.

“Finally that's over.”

He stretched his back and I couldn't help my wondering eyes. His shirt lifted and I caught sight of his partial six pack. Part of me didn't think that was an accident but I wasn't complaining. I shook my head with a smile on my face as I scooted from my seat into the aisle.

“You wouldn't mind getting my bag from there would you?”

He smiled and shook his head, “Not at all my lady.”

I smiled and shook my head at his antics. He grabbed my small gray suitcase type bag and handed it to me. I smiled grateful for his help, would have taken me longer because of my height.

“Let me walk you out. I know guys around here will mess with you unless they see you with someone.”

I gave him my own smirk, “Oh really?”

He gave me a sheepish smile.

I knew he was lying because I had been here a lot and not one guy had hit on me. Gabe was the first guy besides Ben and Robert to take an interest in me. I suppose I didn't hit the right note with guys my own age for some reason.

“Okay fine, I just want to spend more time with you. I just don't want to let you go just yet alright?”

My cheek flooded with warmth from his comment. No guy, besides Alex of my own age, had ever wanted more of my company. People at school didn't even know I existed most of the time.

“Okay fine.”

I couldn't have him meet my grandmother though. I know how the gossip machine works and mom would know in a heartbeat. Which meant Robert would find out and jump to conclusions about the entire situation.

We walked off the plane just talking about random things. He was originally from here and was visiting his mother's family. He lived with his father since he was around six years old because of a custody hearing when he was young. His mother and father had lived here together at the time of his birth but things just didn't work out.

His mother didn't have a steady job or a roof over her head at the time so the judge went in his father side. His mother is now remarried and he has fraternal twin brother and sister, along with a baby brother.

I told him what I could about my family. I told him about my sister and his eyes didn't glaze over about her like every other guy. He hadn't met her so I knew his reaction would be the same as every other guy.

We got into the waiting area where he located his mom and brother. I looked around and found my grandmother sitting in a chair. I grinned happily, I missed her so much.

“Well I guess this is where we part ways.”

He looked unhappy, bothered by something.

I smiled, maybe I could help him.

“How about we trade numbers? We could keep in touch some until we meet again.”

His eyes lit up at my proposal. We traded phones and punched in each others numbers grinning as we did it. I was happy to have another guy friend for the moment. I hope things work out with Robert but if they don't me always have Gabe around.

“Well, I hope to see you around, Laura.”

We wrapped each other in hugs grinning.

“I'll be seeing you as well, Gabe.”

He chuckled and walked off toward his family. I smiled at his retreating figure and turned toward my own family. As I got closer to my family I groaned. Sitting right beside my grandmother was my little cousin, Phil. He was around seven years old and he was sometimes a pain in the ass.

“Momaw!”

Her head snapped up looking around and then her eyes connected with mine. She jumped up trying her best to run toward me. I got to her first and she wrapped her arms around me softly crying. I could feel the tears on my shirt as she cried.

“Oh Laura let me look at you.”

I stood back and grinned at her. Her light green eyes looked me over from head to toe.

“You look so well Laura. I must say you should be fighting off the guys left and right.”

I chuckled rolling my eyes.

“Cousiy!”

I winced as Phil finally noticed me. I heard his small footsteps on the tiled floor and then he ran into my legs. I laughed as he looked up at me. He was my Aunt Karen's son, the youngest out of the four she had. Karen loved kids, she had four of them and only one was around my age.

“Laura, I miss you.”

I chuckled and bent down to his level, “Aw, I missed you too. We can hang out now and be best friends right?”

He laughed and nodded with a huge grin on his face. He threw his arms around my neck and hugged me tightly. I smiled and then pulled him off. Momaw was grinning at us and then she spoke.

“We should get cousin Laura's bags and then get to the car. The kids must be driving aunt Karen crazy by now.”

I laughed and then stood to my feet. Phil held my hand as we walked around the airport. We located baggage claim and then went up to the roller.

I found my bags easily enough; Phil decided to try to help me grab the heavy bags. I held the bag so he wouldn't know I was helping him. His eyes widened as he thought he was picking up the bag all by himself.

Momaw was standing beside us grinning and shaking her head, “I know for sure one of these days you will make such a great mother.”

I smiled, I sure hope so.

“Maybe, if I ever find that special someone.”

Maybe someone that wasn't taken by my own mother.

She sighed. I stood up my bags and rolled them through the airport following my grandmother and Phil out of the airport.

The outside was even worse. People hailing cabs and getting their bags in the back of the cars. Momaw continued to walk off to the side where a big blue van was sitting.

I could see the van shaking from side to side, voices giggling from the back.

“Rachel, help me out with your siblings please!”

I chuckled and Momaw stepped to the passenger side door.

“You kids listen to your mom!”

The giggling stopped as well as the shaking of the vehicle. The passenger side door opened and my aunt, Karen stepped out of the van. Her eyes moved around and found mine.

She smiled and walked toward me.

Karen was in her mid-thirties with dark blonde hair. Her and my mother had different fathers, her hair came from him. She was dressed appropriate for her age and being a mother, the same couldn't be said about my mother though.

Karen wrapped her arms around me and smiled, “Oh Laura, you look beautiful as always. That mother of yours may be my sister but that doesn't mean I agree with the way she raises you.”

I smiled at her. Aunt Karen was the best aunt in the entire world. She wasn't the bitchy aunt but the angel aunt, cooking me whatever I wanted when at her house, and just treating me like her own child.

“Samuel, get out here and help put your cousin put her bags in the car.”

Grandma had rolled the door opened on the side of the van yelling into the van. A boy around the age of thirteen came out grinning like he won the lottery. He was my cousin Samuel, the second oldest.

There was Rachel, the oldest, around twenty. Then there was Daphne, the youngest at five. Plus of course, Phil, the second youngest, at seven.

Quite the batch of kids my aunt had. The girls all looked like my uncle and the boys looked like Karen. Sam came toward me and took the bags from my hands rolling them toward the back of the van. I walked toward the opened door of the van.

My cousin, Rachel, sat on the smaller seat texting on her phone. Rachel had dark brown hair with blonde high lights in her hair. Her nails she painted a dark red color and she wore a black band shirt with some yellow skinny jeans.

“Hi Rachel.”

Her head raised and her eyes connected with mine.

“Hi Cousiy.”

I rolled my eyes, her siblings called me that all the time.

“Laura!”

I turned my head to see Phil and Daphne standing over the seat to see me. Daphne had dark brown hair and brown eyes. Her hair was all curled up and pined along her head. She was dressed in a small yellow dress with some small black dress shoes.

I grinned and placed my bags in the seat next to Rachel. I looked at Daphne holding my hands out and she giggled moving around her brother toward me. She tackled me as she threw her arms around me. I smiled holding and hugging her back.

“My Daphne, you have gotten so big.”

She smiled pulling back, “I'm five, cousiy.”

I smiled at her and then ushered her back to her seat.

“Okay now everyone get in your seats it's time to get going. We have quite a long ride ahead of us.”

I climbed in the van moving my bags to take a seat next to Rachel. Sam took the available seat in the back with Phil and Daphne.

“Everyone buckle up. We don't leave until every buckle sounds.”

I buckled my seat belt nice and tight. Rachel didn't have to mess with hers since she never unbuckled her belt. Momaw was driving back to her house since Karen needed to keep an eye on her kids.

“Laura just so you know you will be sharing a room with Rachel. Karen and the kids are staying with me as well this year.”

I smiled trying not to show my discomfort. Rachel didn't like going to sleep at a decent hour since she wasn't eighteen. She stayed up on that god for saken cell phone all night. Plus not to mention the younger kids would be waking me up early in the morning before the sun even broke if I was lucky.

This holiday was turning out so great! Note heavy sarcasm.