What I Never Told You

Chapter 9

  My mom got up early to drop me off at the LAX airport. We left before the sun was even awake.
  I was pretty much silent during the car ride. Luckily, my mom was filled with enough energy for the both of us and talked about my flight details and how overjoyed my grandparents' were to have me visit. I just smiled and nodded absentmindedly for the whole ride.
  We got to the airport two hours before my flight's departure. I pulled my suitcase out of the trunk and walked over to the drivers side to say bye to my mom. Her eyes began to water as she wrapped her arms around me and squeezed me. "I'm going to miss you. I can't remember the last time we were apart for so long. Call me as soon as you get there."
  "I will. I promise. I'll miss you too." I hugged her one last time before I walked into the airport. I looked back one last time to see what I was leaving behind: dark secrets, broken hearts, and burned bridges.

  I checked my bag in and made it through security with an hour to kill. I roamed around looking at the shops and restaurants.
  My stomach was grumbling, so I grabbed a double chocolate muffin from a cafe before making my way to my gate.
  I sank into an empty chair and began nibbling the muffin. I pulled out my phone and scrolled through Instagram. My feed was filled with pictures of my happy friends. I felt a pang of jealousy, wishing that I was as happy as them. I stopped when I saw a post from Everly's account. It was a Boomerang of her kissing Ryder's cheek at the beach. Her hair was wet and stringy and his was spiking up and they were both smiling at each other. I choked on a piece of muffin and started typing a comment. You guys are so ador-
I hit the backspace and deleted it. I sighed, wishing I could text my best friend about her new boyfriend.

  The intercom interrupted my wallowing. "Now boarding flight 3745 to Zurich."
  I shoved my phone into my jeans and boarded the plane. I sat in my seat and plugged my earbuds in, closing my eyes and hoping that the music would help me escape from reality.
  I nodded my head along until the part about stained red sleeves played. It described exactly how I was feeling.

  I paused the One Republic song and opened my eyes when I felt a weight shift next to me. A pale girl with straight black hair had sat down next to me. "Hi, my name is Amber."
  "Hey, I'm Bella."
  "Nice to meet you. Sooo... are you visiting Switzerland or going home?"
  "I'm visiting my grandparents. What about you?"
  "I'm heading back home. I was in L.A. for vacation. I had so much fun and I hope I'll get the chance to visit again." She pointed to my earbuds.    "What are you listening to?"
  "Secrets by Onerepublic-- one of my favorite bands."
  "Oh my gosh, they're one of my favorites too! What do you think about the Chainsmokers?"
  "I love them!"
  "Me too! I love American bands!"
  "Indoors or outdoors?"
  "Outdoors!"
  "Same!"
  "Action or romance movies?"
  "Romance!" we yelled at the same time.
  Fifty pairs of eyes turned to us and we started laughing.
  Amber pulled out her phone and we spent the rest of the flight watching Isn't it Romantic, laughing at Rebel Wilson and bonding over our mutual love of cooking.
  By the time the plane landed, it felt like Amber and I had been friends since forever. I didn't want to get off.

  We grabbed our bags from the carousel and made our way to the pick up area outside.
  "I had so much fun with you!" Amber squealed and pulled me into a hug.
  "Me too!" And I meant it.
  "What's your Snap? We should hang out while you're here!"
  We swapped our snaps and said our goodbyes before hailing our taxis.

  I rested my head against the window and admired the beautiful scenery. The trees were tall and green and the flowers were full of life and hues of reds, pinks and blues. There was no way it could be winter. It looked like a postcard.

  "We're here. That'll be eight Francs." The gruff voice from the driver's seat brought me out of my trance.
I handed him the money and pulled my suitcase out with me.