The seats in the first class cabin were spacious and comfortable, allowing James Black, who had barely rested for the past two nights, to finally lie down and rest properly.
As the flight attendants moved back and forth providing service to other passengers, they noticed James Black sleeping with a tired expression and unconsciously lowered their voices as they passed by him.
James slept through until the airplane touched down and jolted him awake. By the time he opened his eyes, the plane was smoothly taxiing on the ground.
Five minutes later, James turned on his mobile phone and instinctively logged into WhatsAPP, where Jane Sampson was his only friend.
Seeing several messages from Jane Sampson, James wasnāt surprised.
Having shed her disguise, Jane was quite the chatterbox, always having endless things to say with an array of unique topics. However, after reading the messages from Jane, James couldnāt help but laugh.
He typed out a reply and sent it back.
"Wishful thinking." ā Jane Sampsonās Mr. Black.
The response from the other side came almost instantaneously.
"!!!!" ā James Blackās wife.
"Did your plane land?" ā James Blackās wife.
[Your friend initiated location sharing.]
"I will be off the highway in about half an hour. Iāll send you the hotel location too. If you arrive first, wait for me." ā James Blackās wife.
James hadnāt replied to Jane just yet when the flight attendant announced that first class passengers could disembark. He retrieved his luggage from the overhead compartment and, while descending from the airplane, dialed Janeās number.
She must have been holding her phone, for she quickly picked up.
"Iāve just gotten off the plane; a taxi ride will take about forty minutes, and it will take you 20 minutes to reach the hotel after you get off the highway. Iāll arrive a bit earlier, so Iāll check into the room first and then send you the room number. You can come straight there when you arrive," James explained.
"Okay," Jane responded, and then added another word, "Good."
In just those few lines, James could feel through the screen the joyous mood of Jane, almost as if she were about to fly off herself.
He couldnāt help but smile lightly, "You seem very happy."
"Just a little!" Jane didnāt care whether James believed her or not; she was determined not to admit how extremely joyful she felt.
"Heh," James chuckled, "Your words donāt match your feelings."
"Not true," Jane huffed, "Not at all. Why should I miss you? Youāre not even taking me for hotpot or ice cream."
"True," James nodded, "I do have a diet list suitable for patients just discharged from the hospital here. It includes plain porridge and boiled vegetables, quite suitable for you."
"Goodbye." After saying that, Jane actually hung up the phone.
Listening to the buzzing sound from the phone, James naturally pictured Jane pouting with a look of disgust as he envisioned the hurried crowd at the airport exit. He, alone, walked briskly, a smile on his lips.
If she could still talk back like that, it seemed there wasnāt much to worry about.
Forty minutes later, James arrived at the hotel first, completed the check-in, and then sent a WhatsAPP message to Jane asking about her whereabouts.
But after waiting left and right for about ten minutes with no reply, James, running out of patience, finally made a direct phone call.