Chapter 11 - Home
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The gate came alive with the murmur of chatter, the shuffling of bags, and the irregular rattle of luggage wheels against the floor. William paused the documentary on his phone and glanced over his shoulder. “Looks like we’ll be boarding soon.”
He took out his earbud and motioned for Adathan to do the same. “We’ll watch the rest on the plane.”
Adathan gave him the right earbud with a heavy smile.
He was doing his best not to let it show, but William hadn’t missed the way he’d gradually tensed as they made their way through the crowded airport labyrinth.
The security checkpoint, in particular, had seemed to distress him the most. William could only speculate as to why, but he’d done his best to make it clear he had no intention of leaving Adathan behind.
He wasn’t sure his efforts had made a difference.
“Families with young kids and people with disabilities board first,” William said as they got up from their plastic seats.
“They’re very considerate,” Adathan said.
William stretched his arms over his head with a groan.
He took a deep breath, his mouth watering as the scents of greasy pizza and gooey pastries teased his nose.
Those crooks knew what they were doing, but William would never succumb to their ploy.
At five times the price, airport food was literal thievery—and probably tasted like ass, anyway.
He put his earbuds and phone in his pocket as the speakers broadcast a near-unintelligible message.
The restless crowd flowed toward the gate agents, proving they were better at deciphering airport announcements than William.
“Now it’s our turn to go wait in line,” he said, reaching for his suitcase handle.
“You’ll need to show your boarding pass to the gate agent.
Then, we’ll walk through some kind of tunnel that connects to the plane. ”
He’d set out to explain everything after Adathan nearly walked into the women’s restroom.
It was a mistake people made all the time, but Adathan was clearly embarrassed.
William felt guilty for having underestimated the extent of Adathan’s ignorance regarding what was considered general knowledge in this sphere of society.
Adathan wrapped his hand around William’s bicep as they made their way toward the line. “We’re like ants,” he whispered.
William let out a low chuckle as he cast a glance at their surroundings. Adathan was right; they did act like ants. Except instead of carrying organic matter, they were dragging their luggage, and no one gave a shit about anyone else.
“It’s a short flight,” William said conversationally as they advanced two steps. “We’ll have just enough time to finish watching the documentary and take a nap.”
Adathan squeezed William’s bicep, but he said nothing. He stared blankly at the man in front of them, seeming to focus all his energy on staying calm.
William could only imagine how much anxiety Adathan had been carrying—and their trip was far from over. They’d have to navigate another crowded airport, then take a bus, transfer to the subway, and walk twenty minutes to finally reach William’s apartment.
Which, of course, was on the fourth floor.
The thought exhausted William, but unlike Adathan, he’d be in familiar territory. He had no right to feel sorry for himself.
The line moved at a steady pace, which William was grateful for.
Soon they’d be on the plane, with a few hours to relax.
FIS Poker had exchanged William’s plane ticket so that he’d be sitting with Adathan, landing him a window seat with extra legroom.
The weather was nice, and the sky was deep blue, almost cloudless. The view would be phenomenal.
Silver linings.
Adathan let go of his arm to take out his paper envelope from his pocket—the one his Canadian IDs and birth certificate had been delivered in this morning.
William had blacked out the Eden Serviteurs logo and given it to Adathan to use as a makeshift wallet until he had a chance to buy him a real one.
It sucked, but it was better than William carrying Adathan’s IDs as if he were a child.
“What’s your favorite part of the documentary so far?” William asked as Adathan gripped his arm again.
Adathan pressed his envelope to his chest. “Um, the . . .” He trailed off, his gaze darting between the two gate agents.
The airport staff obviously made him nervous, and William wished he knew why. Could it be their uniforms? They weren’t particularly intimidating with their bright blue sweater vests and yellow silk scarves, but maybe their outfit reminded Adathan of the Eden Serviteur employees who’d abused him.
“Want me to give them your boarding pass?” William asked as the line thinned in front of them. It felt like a ridiculous thing to offer, but he was grasping at straws, desperate to ease Adathan’s anxiety.
Adathan seemed to snap back to reality. “No! Thank you, William.” He let go of his arm and awkwardly opened his envelope with his bandaged hand.
William suppressed a wince as he watched him struggle. Maybe he should have held on to Adathan’s papers after all.
Adathan gasped as he nearly dropped his envelope. He caught it against his chest, but one of his IDs fell and slid toward William’s foot.
William crouched to pick it up.
“Thank you, William,” Adathan blurted as he snatched it from him, but not before William caught a glimpse of the reason for Adathan’s extreme anxiety.
Gabriel S Eden
Oh.
Shit.
The gate agents motioned for them to step closer. William stood up and forced a smile on his face. “Sorry,” he told them as he presented his boarding pass. “It’s his first time; he’s a little nervous.”
The woman gave an empathetic smile. “There’s no need to apologize.”
“Captain Jones has over twenty years of experience,” her colleague said as he looked at Adathan’s—or rather Gabriel’s—boarding pass. “You’re in good hands.”
“Thank you, sir. You’re very kind,” Adathan said weakly. He gripped William’s bicep as they followed the other passengers toward the jet bridge—this time hard enough to hurt.
William had been determined never to bring up the Gabriel thing, but the universe had yet again decided to shit on his plans.
If only he’d inspected the envelope’s contents carefully this morning, Adathan wouldn’t have suffered all this time.
He’d been in such a hurry to get the fuck away from that hotel, from Richard.
And now Adathan was paying the price for William’s carelessness.
William glanced at Adathan, his own legs weakening at the distress he saw in his eyes. Adathan was white as a ghost, his panic so palpable that William was afraid he’d faint before they reached their seats. But when they did, what would William even say?
So, you see, the company accidentally sent you to me instead of shipping you to a slaughterhouse. Me not being a psychopath is the only reason you’re alive right now.
William’s grip tightened around his suitcase handle as they reached the plane.
He wasn’t a patient person—never had been, never would be.
And now, as he watched the other passengers take their damn time finding their seats and sitting the fuck down, he struggled not to scream.
Couldn’t they see they were ruining his life?
“Our seats are over there,” William said, pointing toward the emergency exit. He motioned for Adathan to step into the aisle in front of him.
He was tempted to pretend he hadn’t seen the name on Adathan’s health insurance card, but he couldn’t. It would be selfish and cruel. His only option was to tell Adathan the truth. Well, part of it.
William squeezed Adathan’s shoulder gently, hoping he’d understand his silent promise that everything would be okay.
They reached their seats at last, and William motioned for Adathan to sit by the window. He yanked his carry-on suitcase into the overhead bin and sat down next to Adathan, not wasting a moment before leaning close and whispering, “I should’ve checked your IDs before we left. I’m sorry.”
The other passengers were making a lot of noise as they settled into their seats, but it was not a conversation William could afford to let people overhear.
He leaned in even closer, lowering his voice further as he whispered, “The company called me. They told me there was a mix-up. That they were supposed to send me someone else. But I said it’s you I wanted. ”
Adathan twisted his head to look at him, the proximity of his face making William’s heart skip a beat.
As William waited for him to speak, memories of last night flashed through his mind.
He still had no idea whether Adathan’s cheeky smiles had been real or pretend, but now, taking in the vulnerability in his eyes, he vowed he’d see that relaxed, mischievous face again.
“I’m sorry,” William whispered. “I didn’t wanna keep it from you. I just . . . thought it’d be best to wait until we’d gotten home before telling you. I didn’t want you to worry.”
“William,” Adathan said under his breath, his misty eyes brimming with emotions William couldn’t fully grasp.
“Yeah?”
“You . . .” Adathan’s lips trembled. He took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and whispered, “Want me?”
William’s throat tightened. I want you to be happy, he wanted to say, but he didn’t get to. Their conversation was cut short by a very apologetic flight attendant.
As William listened to her instructions on what to do in case of an emergency, he felt a delicate, bandaged hand gently wrap around his own.
———
“This is it,” William said. He opened the old gray door, his nose wrinkling at the musty odor wafting from his apartment. He dragged his luggage in, embarrassment twisting his gut as he was reminded of the mess he’d left his place in.