Embrace

my 13th reason

Flying is overrated anyway.

Who needs this? There's this smelly man on my left who keeps getting up to go to the restroom. It's only a 7-hour flight and he's made me and the woman next to me get up 4 times for him. The least she could've done when booking these flights was getting me a better seat, window, aisle, or maybe even business class. Alaska's expensive to live in anyways, she must be making big bucks.

I stare out the airplane window at the clouds. There's a cloud that looks like a giraffe, then a balloon, then a house. I'm snapped out of my daze when I hear a little girl laughing and playing with her mom across the aisle. I watch the mom give the girl a picture book.

Why couldn't I have had a childhood like that? Tears prick my eyes. No, they don't There are no tears. I'm not going to cry over something this stupid. Get over it, Adina. I must be lost in thought for too long, and staring at them, because the lady turns to me.

"Do you need something?" She asks me in a rude, defiant voice. In a way, she reminds me of the very she-devil I'm going to go see. I shake my head and turn away. I drift off, watching the sky grow darker, and close my eyes.

Alaska's not as cold as I thought it would be. For July, it's pretty warm but windy and gloomy. It's perfect for Ms. I'mokaywithabandoningmydaughterandrunningoff. I roll my small, gray suitcase through the airport and to the exit.

And that's when I saw her. Selena's holding up a sign with "Adi" written in black, bold letters. As if I'd need a sign to recognize her; I'd remember that face anywhere. 8 years doesn't change memories when those memories were all that filled my thoughts. Either way, I couldn't avoid this situation, so I just walked over to her.

"Adi, honey! I'm so glad you could be here with me!" She grins, and it only makes me angrier. I scowl at her.

"It's not Adi. It's Adina, and it's always been, Adina." I snap. I'm fuming and I've just barely seen her. My seven-year-old nickname didn't live on for very long, and it's not like she'd know anything about who I am now anyway. Even I don't know who I've become. A troubled teen who's visiting her one link to all her pent-up frustrations? Wanna bet how long it'll take for her to reach her limit and blow up? A few hours or a few minutes?

"Sorry, of course, I'm so sorry!" She nods her head up and down and leads me to her car. So fake. I roll my eyes when she's not looking.

A Toyota. Not bad. In all honesty, she's come a long way from spending late nights at the bar, and having me take care of us as she slowly gambled all our possessions away. She gambled me too, but she lost. Foster care won, and in all honesty, I was glad.