Down the Rabbit Hole

Above the clouds

The clouds passed below up in thin, transparent whisps. We cleared 3000ft and bright sun filled the cockpit. My father and I both reached for our sun visors at the same moment. I struggled to keep my heels away from the rudder pedals and my knees from coming into contact with the yoke. Flying was never comfortable for me and I instantly regretted my decision to ride up front rather than back in the cabin where I could have stretched out my legs. On the screen in front of me, the digital representation of the aircraft turned right and onto the blue animated line representing the approach. Within four or five minutes, the aircraft gave a slight jolt as the wheels touched down on tarmack. I hastily unhooked my seatbelt, eager to flee the confining space.
My father and I worked well together, sometimes so well it seemed as if our personal connection was more of a hinderance or at least incidental. That aside, I was still curious as to why he'd asked me to join him on this delivery. I was thinking about that, nearly three hours later, long after the scenery in the FBO lobby had gone stale. A test flight that should have taken twenty minutes was on its second hour and my mind was racing with all the other things I'd rather be doing than waiting. I caught the eye of a young EMT crew member waiting for the arrival of a med vac flight. I smile politely, dismissing the unwanted attention by ruffling through my bag. In my line of work, women can still be few and far between. Its is not surprising that a woman seated alone in a crowded FBO lobby, not dressed in the uniform of a flight attendant of customer service rep would draw some attention. The EMT's, apparently inspired by their surroundings, have begun discussing the movie Flyboys. That is until we are joined by a tall, lithe blond flight attendant. She poses the more enticing distraction. I am neither tall, or blonde and decidely not lithe. A glance at my watch reveals there is only 45 minutes left to my wire window. I take a nervous chug of my coffee and pray my father is keeping an eye on the time.