(name tbd) Tyler & friends mi2 experience

T&C Airport Activities

errr dont mind any jumbled travel terms

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A long-awaited summer break opened up a set of airport double doors for Tyler.

He stood staring mindlessly at the baggage claim, a drifting thought of his belt in the back of his mind. The purple one he kicked, thrashed, and lunged for. It was a proud possession, and he couldn't wait to show it off one last time at the mansion's final get-together.

He recalls the pierce of Chad's lecture, insisting that the small purple strip would get lost and never see the light of day as Tyler folded pairs of shorts into his luggage. Through the years, he would gather to ignore most of what that man said. It wasn't that his protests were illogical; Tyler knew him well enough to know that whatever he said, always went. He knew Chad was just as proud as he was. His cousin had just always displayed a side of hardheadedness.

The rotation of the conveyor was increasingly adding to his nauseous headache from the first half of their layover: first from Arizona to Michigan, he believes, then to an island off the coast somewhere. Safe to say Chad knew more than he did, for this trip at least. He was about to whip out his phone to inform him he can't find the unremarkable suitcase, before finally laying eyes on the dark leather carrier. Geez, that bag had passed his sight at least a handful of times already, and he was supposed to be the one encompassing a sharp eye.

"Thanks, kid. Excited?" Chad returns, taking the bag in one hand with a pack of chocolates in the other. He was well aware Tyler was essentially an adult by now, but the nickname, along with some more amusing ones such as 'DNA Man', which Chad had the honor of crowning, had always been carried on each other's backs.

"Yeah, for the most part," Tyler pinched a smile. The last time he'd set foot in that place, he was thirteen years old with a white belt tied tightly, proudly around his forehead. "But it's gonna be harder to have a good time over there when you know it's gonna be your last. Also, when'd you even book the flight?"

"Well, we left at dawn, did we not?" Chad's smile shook, fingers rummaging through an app on his phone to catch a Lyft for convenience. "Plus, it's not to say we can't ever visit after it's sold."

"Right, nevermind!" He wasn't sure what statement he responded to, but he'll probably get an answer to his question later. Within a few taps, Chad shuts his phone down. He plops down on a seat, leaning back on the nearest metal bench with a click of the tongue. "S'gonna get here in eight minutes."

Most of the trip had already been done and dusted, so the plan was simple: catch the Lyft to a ferry terminal, then swoop up a ride to the island. The part with the stranger's car would hog up a considerable chunk of their time, but that was fine with Tyler; he adored being on the road, as he always has. The mere mention of hopping in the car and driving a few miles would always have his eyes glimmering like stars.

"Soooo whaddya thinking of lately? 'M pretty bored actually, really bored. How's Steve?" The one with the headband sounded childish, as he flicked the zipper of his shirt.

"Oh, I don't talk to him anymore. Dropped off, slacked off, so many clients 'cause of that guy." Tyler gave him a look. "Unprofessional little-"

"Actually? Do you need a talk!?" He turned his head over, facing the side of Chad's face that was staring off into the distance. "Damn, he was a cool person. What if he's going through something?" He could notice his voice trail off towards the end.

That's what he had to say? "Well Tyler, on the other hand, you're not the one who dealt with his weird... stuff for years without catching a break. Dude, he exhausts me."

Tyler could see the other bite his lip, focused on something in the distance as if trying to quell down an uneasy feeling in the atmosphere. "Maybe he's goin' through a divorce? A crisis? Awh, what if his dog died and he's grieving? I don't know why those were the first things that popped up, but you could start trying to see things, y'know, beyond your own perception."

"... If you like to be that way, then take this with a grain of salt. It's important nevertheless." His gaze remains unruffled but directed toward the other direction. "Not to make my situation all deep, and be nice and all that, but, well? In the end, lots of people come and go. Can't rely on anyone later... uh, later as in from now on out, of course." The words came out more awkward than he hoped, he wasn't really sure what message he was trying to convey anymore.

"Wow, suddenly?" Tyler stopped, eyebrows knit in a playful perplexity. He would love to agree with the man's words, but half of him wanted to laugh at the sudden, almost movie-like interruption.

"Even if you don't realize it, Tyler, I don't think you have that through your head very well." Chad's voice rose to something close to a chuckle, presumably just then catching up with his words; he couldn't help but agree with Tyler, at least a little. "If I hadn't known you, I probably would've taken advantage of you already."

"Alright, I guess I like honesty. I do think I have enough life experience to know that, but I'll think about it." Such a stretch to the sudden shift struck him awkward, and he couldn't think of any possible response Chad could make to flip a switch back to normal. "Y'wanna head up now?"

Chad finished with a deep nod. The duo lugged their reasonably sized carry-ons to and up an escalator. He thinks that was the first time he had witnessed Chad trip, while Tyler was in front fighting back a laugh, already having leaped off the freaky little escalator comb plate. The two traveled some distance before finally coming within a stretch of the ground transportation queue.

"Come on, the driver's probably waiting on us!" Tyler broke into a slight sprint, his cousin speed-walking not too far behind. He knew to say Chad was never late would be a slight exaggeration, but both of them knew exactly when the car would arrive. Generally, he would have dragged Tyler up and put him on Lyft scouting duty as soon as the ride was booked. He'll have to note not to rely on people when they're mentally exhausted, too.

Seated in the sleek vehicle, the latest memory of Tyler was silently humming a catchy, melancholic tune and maybe faintly catching a muted beep of some sort of radio, he could assume. Had the tune been something floating atop his mind, or did it come from an external source within the car? Either way, he was far immersed in la-la land with rainbows and lollipops to analyze his surroundings any further.