Flight Encounter

Hamish glanced furtively sideways at the girl sitting beside him in the window seat. She noticed his head move and smiled at him.

“Hi,” she said brightly.

“Hi,” he replied, sticking out his hand, “pleased to meet you. I’m Hamish.”

“Jane,” she replied, shaking his hand.

“You look familiar, have we met?” Oh god, I can do better than that. Can’t I?

“I don’t think so. I would have remembered,” she smiled again.

They were in business class, just two seats, aisle and window, on a British Airways flight from Los Angeles to London. She was dressed in black leggings and a white short-sleeved silk blouse. Her long black hair cascaded over her shoulders, framing the high cheekbones and intense brown eyes. A gold chain could be seen around her neck, contrasting with the flawless, lightly tanned skin. Her accent was Southern California, her voice slightly breathy and warm, easy on the ears. He guessed she was in her late twenties or early thirties.

Hamish was dressed in blue jeans and a tweed jacket. He supposed he looked like a professor, which is precisely what he was. He was almost exactly six feet tall with light brown hair, a little long now, combed back over his head and around his ears. He was 45 years old and looked older.

She looked out of the window and gripped the armrests. The plane was still parked, and passengers were arriving.

“I’m a little nervous,” she admitted, “haven’t flown in years”.

“Don’t worry, I’m used to it. I’ll take care of you.” They both smiled.

At that moment, a flight attendant arrived bearing champagne.

“Miss Smith,” he said, “like some champagne?”

“Yes, please,” she took the proffered glass and held it while he poured from the bottle in his other hand. “Anything you want, just press the button,” he indicated overhead and added, “I’m a big fan.”

She smiled at him and nodded. He glanced at Hamish, who shook his head at the proffered champagne, then walked away.

“Fan?” Hamish asked sheepishly.

“Oh, I had a couple of hits back in the noughties. Some people still remember.”