Perfect Symmetry

“I’ve never flown first class before,” I said for probably the tenth time, fidgeting next to Jonathan in excitement as we sat by our gate at Chicago O’Hare Airport.

Jonathan chuckled gamely. “Really? Tell me more.”

I pulled out my ticket again and scrutinized it thoroughly.

“It means we get to board before everyone else! I’m so excited for that feeling of superiority,” I whispered gleefully.

“Well the people with young kids get to board very first but we’re right after,” Jon corrected gently.

I frowned. “That’s right...dammit if only we had a kid to bring around when we flew so that we could board super early.”

“And what would we do with the kid once the trip was over?” Jonathan played along.

I shrugged. “I dunno, we could leave him somewhere in Canada and let some other people use him for their travel needs.”

Jonathan laughed. “That is the most logical thing to do. That is, until we procure some kids of our own.”

I reddened. “I’ll go find a kid for us to steal, then.”

He knew I had purposely dodged that conversation and thankfully he let it drop. When the woman at the podium called for first class ticket holders, I leaped up like an excited child and grabbed my carry on items and waited for Jonathan to do the same. He went purposely slow, stretching and taking precious seconds to pick up his own bags.

“You’re killing me here,” I begged him, nudging his leg with my foot.

He shot me a grin and we both walked over to the gate entrance. Once we boarded the aircraft, I immediately took in my surroundings. Usually I tried not to look too hard at first class, since I was only making the journey to coach that much more painful. This time, however, I got to revel in it. Jon stopped at row seven and shoved his duffel bag in the overhead compartment. I kept my bag with me.

“Which seat do you want?” I asked innocently.

“Oh don’t give me that, Jazz. We both know you want the window seat, so take it,” Jonathan replied sarcastically.

I gave him a grateful smile. “You’re the best.”

I squished around in my seat for a few minutes, trying to decide if the seats were more comfortable than the ones in coach. They were, but only by a small margin. I slouched in my seat in order to utilize all of the extra legroom, and I poked at my personal television curiously.

“Am I embarrassing you yet?” I teased Jonathan as he watched me fool around and press every button I could.

My fingers were inching towards the call button for the flight attendant when Jonathan grasped my fingers firmly.

“You could never embarrass me; you just make things much more interesting,” he answered carefully.

I patted his arm. “That was a very good response my dear.”

Jonathan pulled my hand towards him and kissed my knuckles softly in response. I felt my face grow hot and I pulled my hand away immediately, being conscious of the other people filing through first class as they boarded the aircraft on their way to coach.

“Am I embarrassing you yet?” Jon whispered to me with a wink.

I hit his bicep in irritation. “You win this round.”

He laughed victoriously and then pulled out one of the lame magazines they provide in the cabin to flick through before take-off. I turned my attention to the window, watching the people on the jetway directing airplanes, loading and unloading luggage, and driving various trucks and cars.

Before I knew it we were taking off and I was watching the Chicago cityscape get smaller and smaller until the entire plane disappeared into cloud cover. I knew I lot of people were afraid of flying, but I always found it exhilarating and fascinating. Physics still couldn’t explain to me how this giant hunk of metal carrying all these people could lift off of the ground and fly amongst the clouds.

“Were you ever afraid of flying?” I asked Jonathan conversationally as the plane began to cruise at whatever altitude it was at.

He nodded. “I was pretty afraid of it for a while. Then the whole hockey travel thing kind of just forced me to get over it. I still hate landing though.”

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. “You love it, don’t you. I can tell,” he was studying my face carefully.

I nodded excitedly. “I’ve loved flying for as long as I can remember. But it’s even better here in first class.” I elbowed him playfully.

“Well it’s only a two hour flight so enjoy it,” he said with a smile.

I leaned back in my seat and put in some headphones in order to watch episodes of 30 Rock on my little personal television screen. The two hours seemed like mere minutes. Soon the pilot was announcing the aircraft’s final descent and I looked eagerly out of the window as the landscape of Manitoba appeared below. As the landmarks grew bigger and bigger, I sensed Jonathan getting a little stressed, so I took his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

I was conflicted between comforting Jonathan and watching the landscape become larger and larger until the plane became part of it. I compromised, keeping hold of Jonathan’s hand while still looking out the window in awe. Once the wheels touched the ground, Jon’s grip on my hands tightened for a split second, as if waiting to see if the plane would explode or not. Smiling craftily, I lifted his hand towards me and I kissed his knuckles.

His tense face broke into a smile and he released his grip on my hand just as the plane slowed to a crawl and taxied towards the gate.

“I want to kiss you but you would probably get all embarrassed, right?” he whispered as everyone around us turned on their cell phones and started gathering their belongings.

“It most definitely would,” I scolded. I turned to look out the window and Jonathan pressed a kiss to my cheek anyway.

“That was a compromise,” he defended when he saw my face.

I didn’t really mind, to be perfectly honest. I had suddenly just realized that I was in Canada. To meet Jonathan’s family. This was suddenly becoming extremely scary and intimidating. I was quiet all while we deplaned the aircraft and made our way through customs. Jonathan noticed as soon as we picked up the rental car and I was silent as we pulled onto the freeway.

“Is everything okay, Jazz? Are you feeling sick?” he asked concernedly.

I shook my head vehemently. “What if your family hates me?”
Jon laughed loudly. “If that’s what you’re stressing out about, forget it. That’s impossible. Now, shall I play some French rap music or are you going to pick the music?”

That settled it. I spent most of the drive finding a good station. I eventually found a station that seemed to play indie love songs, but in French, which I found enticing.

“Tell me what they’re saying,” I begged Jonathan as we drove.

His mouth dipped in conversation and he increased the volume just a little bit to hear all of the lyrics.

“I wouldn’t know how to live without you/you’re the light amongst the darkness… all that cheesy stuff,” he told me honestly, his face flushing a little bit.

“I love it,” I decided, leaning back in my seat and closing my eyes to really delve into the music.

“We’re here,” was the declaration that pulled me out of my reverie and back into the present. My heartbeat sped up as the car pulled up to a large two story home with an expansive yard that stretched all around the house. Snow covered most of the land, and there was a light coating on the roof as well. It was a true winter wonderland.

“Is this where you grew up?” I asked nervously.

Jonathan smiled. “Not quite. Mum and dad moved out here a few years ago. I wanted to give them a nicer place to retire.”

The fact that he had bought this house for his parents was really touching and moved me quite a bit. I shivered, but despite the absolutely freezing temperature, it was mostly due to my nerves. I grasped the handle on my luggage and gulped nervously. Jonathan took my hand and we walked up the long driveway up to the front door. Jonathan had to let go of my hand to ring the doorbell and I suddenly felt very insecure without it.

The door opened quickly, almost just as Jonathan’s finger left the doorbell. A woman with slightly grey hair and a large smile on her face answered the door.

“Jonathan! Ma chérie, je vous ai manqué! Vous venez embrasser votre mère!” she exclaimed happily.

Jonathan smiled shyly and kissed his mother on both cheeks and gave her a hug.

“I’ve missed you too, mum,” he said as she patted his head. Her eyes met mine and she motioned to me.

“Come, come inside…Jazz, isn’t it? I’m Andree; it’s so lovely to finally meet you,” she greeted me warmly as we entered the house and stood in the foyer. “Come, we’ve got the guest room all sorted out for you. Jon has his own room but of course you’re welcome to share,” she winked surreptitiously.

Jonathan groaned and I blushed. We both turned to the stairs, where a middle aged man with a receding hairline and tall stature was descending.

“Well look what Santa brought this year,” he grinned at his son.

“Hi Dad,” Jonathan laughed, and the two men embraced briefly before the attention once again fell to me.

“And this must be Jazz,” he said when he turned to me. “I’m Bryan.”

“Nice to meet you,” I smiled pleasantly. “And thanks so much for having me.”

Andree tutted at that. “It’s always nice to have the whole family here for Christmas,” she remarked. “Isn’t your family missing you this year?” she asked politely.

I waved it off. “They have plenty of places to go, and my cousins don’t live far so they’ll probably spend Christmas there.”

“Well that’s good; the closer the family the better,” she replied, shooting a pointed look at Jonathan.

“Mum I play for the Chicago Blackhawks. Not much I could do about that,” Jonathan reminded her.

“You could always ask to play for the Winnipeg Jets,” she retorted in a sing-songy tone.

“It doesn’t quite work like that,” Jonathan rolled his eyes affectionately as if it was an argument he always had but loved having. “Wait, did you say whole family? Did David make it here too?”

Bryan nodded. “He’ll be here later tonight. It’ll be nice to have a full house.”

“Jonathan, take Jazz to her room and let her shower or rest or whatever before we have dinner,” Andree commanded as she wandered back into the kitchen. “Can I make you a tea or coffee, Jazz?”

“Oh not just now, thanks,” I replied. “I think I’ll just have a shower and rest for a bit, like you said. It’s been a bit of a long day.”

“Come on, I’ll show you,” Jon murmured as he took my suitcase and headed upstairs. I followed slowly.

The guest room was a large, airy room with its own en-suite. The bedding was Christmas themed, with holly and mistletoe embroidered on the bright red duvet. I smiled at that. The towels were left on the bed and Jonathan put my bags by the bed and reached for me.

“Your family’s great,” I told him honestly, as he kissed my neck softly.

“You’re beautiful,” he whispered gruffly as his lips met mine and we both fell back onto the bed.

I laughed, trying hard to push his head away from mine.

“We can’t! We’re in your parents’ house for goodness sakes,” I cried, my words dying on my lips as his mouth found its way back onto mine.

“Maybe I don’t care,” he muttered.

I snorted. “Oh you care. Now, I’m off for a shower and I’m exhausted.”

“Couldn’t I just join you in the shower? You know, to conserve water and all that,” he teased, pouting at me.

“I didn’t know you were so environmentally conscious,” I remarked as I put the shower on and began to undress.

“I’ll do just about anything for the environment’s sake,” he replied seriously, moving towards the bathroom with a smirk on his face.

I shut the door in his face and locked it too. “See you later, Jonathan.”

I heard him grumble and then eventually leave the room and I stepped into the hot shower and let the water coat my body as I lathered soap. My hair needed a nice wash after the airplane and I spent a good fifteen minutes luxuriously washing every inch of me. The hot water was calming and soothing, so that when I got out of the shower and pulled on yoga pants and a sweatshirt, I was all of a sudden even more tired than I was before. I lay down for what I thought was a few minutes in bed. However, by the time I woke up, the sun was no longer streaming through the windows. A quick glance at my phone told me what I suspected: it was ten thirty at night.
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