Page 54 of Forever Fallen

He was always controlling things, pushing and pushing, and she’d only seen him lose control once… the first time he kissed her. They’d both been so irate, and that single kiss had happened before either realized it. It was like throwing gasoline on a fire.

What would happen if the next time he pushed back… that she welcomed his confrontation? Would he back down? Would that fire flare between them again?

“… And we’re here,” Thumper announced, smiling at the hangar before nodding at the two of them. “Let’s head for the hangar to see about getting the plane ready for flight. If she won’t fly, then we’ll need to make other arrangements.”

Sophie watched as the two men headed towards the hangar with a purpose, following closely behind. She had no idea what they were doing or what this would involve… having never been inside of a hangar before.

She’d flown several times in the past, but this was different. Even when she took Ryan to Flyboys – she never went inside of the mysterious and looming hangar in the distance.

Looking around, she couldn’t help but feel that wide-eyed awe of someone seeing something incredible for the first time.

The building was massive and looked like it was made of metal paneling. Two lights hung over the plane that looked like it was trapped in time. It looked dated compared to some of the others inside, or at least to her it did…

Ryan and Thumper grinned at each other, looking extremely pleased.

“She’s a gem…” Thumper said openly. “You’ve never said a thing.”

“Bought it a while ago,” Ryan shrugged. “Mom was mad because I spent all my cash on this plane instead of putting it down on a house. This was just something you did, you know? I was never a car guy and had no need for a house at the time.”

“Oh, I know… I used to steal my uncle’s crop duster.”

“You did?” Sophie chimed in, stunned.

Ryan turned to her as Thumper nodded, setting down the tools and opening the door to the plane to look around.

“Feel free to look around,” Ryan began quietly. “I’m hoping the plane will fire right up, but we might be a little bit. You can climb around in my plane, just don’t touch any of the others. Pilots are really particular about their airplanes, and I don’t want someone to walk in and jump down your throat if you are near theirs…”

Nodding, Sophie turned and slowly looked over the plane while the two men worked. Ryan was filling the tank while Thumper was under the hood of the plane, inspecting it.

The propeller was white with red painted at the tip of each blade. Along the body of the plane, she saw three massive stripes that tapered off, reminding her of a tiger or cat’s claw marks. Letters and numbers were large, nearly covering the entire tail portion of the plane, clearly marking it.

Stepping near the open doors, she saw Thumper and Ryan sitting inside the small cockpit… only to have Ryan look at her, smiling.

“Want to take a look?”

“Oh no…” she balked nervously. “I’m good. Just curious.”

“I think I’m going to get a bottle of water from the vending machines,” Thumper said and nodded. “I’ll bring you both one.”

The man got out of the plane and walked off, disappearing just out of sight.

“Climb up,” Ryan offered. “… Or don’t. It’s up to you.”

Why did he have to say things like that sometimes?she mused, almost getting upset… only to remember her earlier thoughts.

Maybe he was expecting her to say no or reject the offer. Instead, she walked around the plane and leaned into the open door, before glancing around looking for a ladder or…

Ah-ha!

Foot prop.

Placing her foot on the small step that was almost unnoticeable on the landing gear, she climbed inside the small cabin in an ungainly fashion. The men had made it look so easy, but she was quite awkward about it.

Sitting on the seat, she couldn’t help but feel slightly accomplished and a little awestruck that they could operate something like this.

The entire massive console before her was covered with dials, screens, and switches, making it look intimidating.

“I used to fly this every time I came home to visit…” Ryan said softly, gently tracing his finger over one of the dials and smiling to himself as if she wasn’t there. “I love this plane and the feeling of being airborne.”

---