Fly With Me

Gummy Bears

Ivory

"Indigo. Ash." I yelled over the chaos that was our cramped little apartment. After four years of being their pseudo-parent, I had this routine down.

Nothing could have prepared 20-year-old me for this mess, but I'm proud of what I was able to accomplish after life dealt me a card heavy enough to break anyone.

"Apurate," I hurried my baby brother Ash, "we have to get you to the daycare, so you can start on time."

He turned to look me in the eyes. Oh, goodness. All that got me was his classic stare-down. How so much attitude fit into such a little body I would never know.

"Indigo, are you ready?"

"Yeah, Mom. Just need to get my backpack," she called back.

Mom.

You know you're in trouble when that simple title can make your whole break out in goosebumps. I love and hate that word. I love it because despite being my siblings by blood, they have honored me with the title of Mom for as long as I remember. I hate it because our own "Mom" if you can even call her that, refused to give us the love every child deserves.

I had exactly two hours to get these goblins to their respective grades and schools. With two kids, that was a hard enough task on a good day.

Ash, being four, had no idea just how long it took to drive places. I think he believed that time stopped while driving a car from how many sci-fi movies he watched with instant teleportation. Indigo, being eight, decided she would be my little helper. I was deeply dreading her teen years when hormones would eventually turn my angel into a demon. For now, I would bask in her generosity and kindness.

Everyone strapped into my old Volvo and I began to pull out of the driveway. I knew how to take care of my things, so despite my car's old age, it looked and ran as if it were brand spanking new. We could continue living with this car for the rest of our lives, regardless of Ash's request to get a Ferrari with goddess knows what money.

My salary was good enough for only having a few scattered college credits. My job also allowed me to travel a lot as a flight attendant. The downside, I had to be away from my kiddos a lot more than I enjoyed. Thankfully, our great aunt, Mima, helps take care of the kids while I have to work. It's much, much better than having to pay millions for a nanny. Mima's hugs are also the best, so nobody complains about this arrangement.

I became a flight attendant at the age of 19, after getting the FAA certification. I've always wanted to travel and escape my life, becoming a flight attendant just happened to become my way out while still providing for my family. At the time, I heard from a friend of a friend that Pandora Airlines was giving out a free certification program for people to become flight attendants in exchange for five years of service. I've been in charge of the unaccompanied minors program for about 2 years with the same airline and just finished my fifth year.

I was moving up as I held more responsibility. A plus to that job was that I got to fly with kids and help them feel safe and not alone as they traveled to new places. The pay raise was also a nice bonus, as the child support I got from my absentee mom was always not enough. Well, more like imaginary.

I try to schedule my national flights for the weekdays. Never weekends. This way, Mima can stay with the kids in the afternoons while I'm away. The kids can stay in school in the mornings. I never want to be absent in the kids' lives like our Mother has been in ours. Love and time were the two things I could give my kiddos unconditionally, and I would, until my dying breath.

Approaching the corner of the school, I dropped off Indigo with a kiss on her cheeks. She would walk over to the elementary school with her best friend, supervised by her mom, as she had done for the past two years. I had no idea what I would do when she went to middle school. I pulled out of the drop-off, deciding that was a problem for future me.