Forever and Always

I walked onto the airplane without a single bag in my hand. It was going to be an eleven hour, nonstop flight to London. I will then catch a connecting flight to Romania from London’s Heathrow Airport. I have never been out of the country before, and a part of me was nervous about spending a lot of hours on an airplane. Also, I wasn’t sure how I was going to deal with the whole sunlight predicament. I might have to spend a lot of time in the bathroom.

As I walked down the aisle, I couldn’t help but notice that the plane was unusually empty—especially towards the back.  The first eight rows were jammed packed with passengers. But there wasn’t a single person in the last ten rows.  That was weird, really weird.

My seat was M-3 and it was near the back of the plane. So that would mean I was going to be sitting all alone in an enormous airplane for eleven straight hours.  I wasn’t a huge social butterfly, but I still needed some kind of human interaction.

As I walked past the crammed passengers at the front of the plane, it was apparent that all eyes were on me.  Each face I looked at seemed to be asking, ‘who is the guy going solo to the back’?

The expression on my face must have read that I was equally as surprised as the rest of them. As I got further down the aisle, I realized I wasn't the only person. A matter of fact, there was a woman in her mid-twenties in my row.
Was I early?
I could have sworn I was late boarding the plane.

I stepped inside the narrow seating area and luckily there was an empty seat separating us. I pulled my legs in so the young lady and I wouldn’t bump knees.  I looked down as I stepped in front of her to get to my seat. She never once looked up at me. Apparently, she wasn’t too happy that I was in her precious little row.

Too bad for her.

I sat in my seat and tried to get comfortable.  It didn’t matter that I was only one of two people in the back of the plane; I was still having a horrible time trying to get comfy in these ridiculously narrow rows.  I adjusted my seat and centered myself in a way that would give me the most leg room. Finally, I was in the perfect position for maximum comfort.

“Excuse me, sir?” a dark haired stewardess said. “Would you like anything?”

“Like what?” I asked, surprised.

“Something to drink,” she said, giving me a pleasant smile.

“Already? Don't you wait an hour or so before we leave?”

The stewardess stared blankly at me. Apparently she didn’t like random questions.

“Come back in an hour and I'll let you know if I get thirsty.” I looked at the woman sitting next to me and I expected some kind of reaction out of her, but there was nothing. She seemed incredibly uninterested, almost bitchy in her demeanor.

The stewardess left. I looked around and noticed there was a movie screen on the back of the seat directly in front of me. It had headphones connected to it.
Thank God. I could at least watch some movies and play Tetris.
 

A male stewardess stood in front of us and said his thing on safety and I decided to lay back and enjoy the night. I was covered up with clothing pretty good considering I had no idea when the sun would be coming up and peaking through the windows. I was wearing long jeans with Doc Marten boots. I had a black t-shirt on underneath a black leather jacket.  It was a lot of clothes for a summer evening, but there was really nothing I could do about it.  I licked the inside of my teeth and could feel my incisors pointed out with my tongue. I hadn’t had a need yet to feed on blood, but I knew that would only be a matter of time.

The stewardess came by again and I stopped her.  “Actually I would like a small blanket if you have one?”

“A small one? We have large ones big enough for a boy as big as you,” she said, trying to be cute.

“Actually, I’ll take a child size if you have it?”

The stewardess gave me a strange look and said, “I’ll see what I can find.”

I wanted a small blanket so I could put it over my head when the sun came out. The Stewardess didn’t know why I needed it. 

Next time I should just say,
Look I’m a vampire and the sun fries my skin. Could you be a dear and get me a miniature blanket, so I don’t have the urge to turn into a damn eagle and peck your face off.

I knew if I had to I would just hit the lavatory and sit in there as long as I needed to.   I took a late flight so I wouldn't be worrying about that till much later.

“It's crazy, huh?”

Did the woman speak to me or was she talking to herself?

I looked at the woman beside me and our eyes met. She had blonde hair and amazing blue eyes that were the color of the sea. She was wearing a light blue blouse with white legging stretch pants. Her hair was shoulder length and she definitely had a pretty face.

“I'm sorry, did you say something?” I asked.

She smiled pleasantly at me. “I said that it's crazy we’re the only two back here.”

“I know. What's the deal with that?”

“Apparently some hot shot billionaire bought the seats for his entourage and never showed up.”

“Wow that is crazy.” Thank God she was talking to me; I couldn't imagine eleven hours next to some snooty chick with an attitude. “My name is Josiah.” I made a handshake gesture toward her. She shook my hand the way petite girls do. You know that thing they do that’s more of a ‘limp hand wiggle’ than an actual handshake.

“My name is Helen.”

“I wouldn't peg you for a Helen,” I said.

“Really? What name do I look like?”

I looked at her closely and said, “You look more like a Heather or a Nicole.”

“No, I'm a Helen. I was named after my grandma.” She smiled at me again, and this time she had the spark in her eyes that girls get when they’re interested in you. “Josiah? That's an unusual name.”

“I had unusual parents,” I said, laughing.

“Had?”

“Yeah, they passed away a couple years back.”

“I'm sorry to hear that.”

“Those are the breaks,” I said, trying to sound positive.

“Crappy break.”

I paused and looked at her. She seemed very genuine. For a brief moment, I forgot about Lena. Lena was the girl that had turned my life upside down. Before her, I didn't believe in vampires, werewolves, or anything supernatural. Now, not only did I believe in it, I was thrown in the middle of all of it.

For a brief second, I forgot that I had almost been killed multiple times because of my association with her. Well, the last few times weren't her fault. It had more to do with the fact that I am a vampire.

“Are you going to London?” I asked.

“That's what the flight says,” she said, winking at me.

“Are you connecting to another flight from London?” I clarified.

“No, I’m doing some business in London.”

“What business are you in?”

“What are you? A cop?”

I laughed. “No, I was just asking.”

“I'm kidding,
Jo-Jo
.  Lighten up. I'm in the music business. I'm a producer for a small label.”

“Jo-Jo?  I'm not sure you know me well enough to call me Jo-Jo,” I said, jokingly.

“Do you prefer Josie?”

“How about Josiah?”

“So we're not at the cute nickname phase in our relationship yet?” she asked.

“Is that what this is – a relationship?”

“There is definitely potential.”

“Oh, is there?” I said laughing.

Who the hell is this woman? She’s hilarious!

She turned her body and got comfortable.  Her head was looking in my direction. “If you don't mind, I'm going to take a nap. But feel free to spoon with me if you like.”

I just looked at her with a big, goofy grin. She was something else. She leaned her chair back and put her ear plugs in her ears and was out like a light.

I, on the other hand, had just been smacked over the head by flirt-girl 2000. I decided to take her lead and close my eyes too. It was nice to relax.

I thought about what I was about to embark on. I was heading to Dracula’s Castle in Transylvania to meet some mystery blue gnome from a vision I had.  You know your typical vacation getaway.

I had been having a lot of visions as of late. Visions were new to me and I wasn't sure if I had been interpreting them correctly.  For the most part, the visions have been pretty literal.

My visions first had me train my best friend, Tommy, to become a cognitive-thinking werewolf.  I was able to accomplish that feat rather quickly. As far as we know he is the first werewolf to do so.

Visions weren’t the only thing that was new to me. The last few months I have been through the ringer. My life has been one of legends and nightmares. I know that sounds melodramatic, but I'm actually playing it down. I have been given the keys to the Mani kingdom and I'm still not sure exactly what to do with them. Mani are a vampire race that has been roaming the world for the last 10,000 years. From what I gather there are a lot of them, but they are very unorganized. They seem to be running wild and without a leader or any kind of vision. That’s where I come in. There has been a prophesy since the beginning of the race, that a chosen vampire will come forward and unite the Mani and bring peace to all.  As far as I know, and with everything I have seen, I’m that chosen vampire
. I know, lucky me
.

I have the ability to transition into a great white eagle whenever my heart desires. As an eagle, I am able to fly all over, but it doesn’t stop there.  I’m also one of the rare Mani that can fly in my vampire form.

I am also able to move things with my mind. I haven't quite mastered that one. And to be honest, it’s something I’m not exactly comfortable doing.

I also have visions and premonitions in which I can see things; past, present and future. So all and in all, my life has been completely turned upside down. So to say I needed some rest on an eleven hour plane ride was an understatement.

I left my friends back in Los Angeles because, in my gut, I knew I needed to do this adventure alone. Among my friends was the love of my life, Lena. I'm not quite sure exactly when I fell in love with her, all I know is that I have. When I’m around her, I feel ten feet tall. Saving a girl’s life a couple times has the ability to make a guy feel that way.

I thought about my Lena and rested. I pictured her short black hair, and brown eyes. I remembered our last intimate moment together in Yari’s guest room and soon I drifted off.