Chance Of A Lifetime

Something More (smut)

October, 2021:

      "Geez, watch where you're going, dumbass!" Kyra shouted through the open window as she stomped on the brake pedal to avoid hitting the Smart car that had hurtled across three lanes of traffic and nearly clipped the bumper of her Wrangler as it shot toward the offramp on the opposite side of the highway. "Where the hell do these jack-wagons get their licences anyhow, a bubble gum dispenser?"

      "That's assuming they actually have one," Aidan replied. "But it would be helpful if the driver was at least as smart as the car, because if the ass-monkey keeps doing that kind of crap in that little Matchbox car, it won't be long before somebody has to pick him out of the tread of a semi tire, or something equally gross."

      As she carefully eased into the other lane to reach their own exit, Kyra grumbled, "It never fails. The closer you get to the airport, the more crazies you run into. I just always hope that none of them are the actual pilots, cuz if they drive this badly, I wouldn't trust them to fly a damn plane."

      "Gee, thanks so much for that cheery thought," Aidan retorted. "Not exactly something I wanna be thinking about during my very first plane trip."

      "Oops, sorry about that, hon," her roommate apologized. "I wasn't trying to freak you out or anything, I'm sure everything will be fine. And the flight's only, what... a little over an hour, right?"

      She eased the car into the exit that would take them to Kansas City International Airport, then, once they had safely merged back into the flow of traffic, Kyra quickly cast a mischievous glance at her friend before returning her attention to the road, and said, "Besides, you should have plenty of other things to occupy your mind for that short of a time. Like whether or not you might get to see Ashley in just his towel again."

      "Oh, when are you gonna give up on that!? I've already told you, he's not interested in being anything more than friends, he said so himself," Aidan sighed in exasperation. "So I'm not gonna screw that up, and possibly piss off Aerin, by throwing myself at him. I do have a little more self-respect than that, y'know."

      "Yeah, I know. But I can't help it if I think you'd be cute together. Hell, to be honest with you, if I wasn't dating Danny, I might have thrown myself at him when they came to see you back in May. I mean, I knew from pictures and videos that the man was hot, but day-um! And he seems to be such a really, genuinely nice guy, too."

      "You're obviously not gonna hear me argue either point, because you're right on both counts," Aidan replied as they approached the airport. "But Ash is more into the Playboy Playmate types, which I'm obviously not, so I've accepted the fact that I've been pretty decisively friend-zoned. Yeah, I admit that I wouldn't have minded a bit if things had turned out differently, but it is what it is."

      Kyra pulled up to the entrance to the airport, and Aidan got out, grabbing her bag from the backseat and hoisting it onto her shoulder. Before she closed the door, Kyra called out, "Hey, call or shoot me a text when you land in Nashville, so I know you got there okay! Have fun, and I'll see you Monday!"

      "Yeah, see you Monday!" she called back. "I'll talk to you when I get there!" 

      As Kyra pulled away, Aidan darted inside to collect her boarding pass and find the area where she would actually board the plane when it was called. This, along with paying close attention to all of the announcements that were made, out of fear of missing the boarding call, meant that she didn't have time to think further on Kyra's words until she was securely belted into her seat, watching the plane leave the ground. 

      After accepting a Dr. Pepper from the attendant, she leaned back in her seat, thinking back to Ashley's phone call the previous month, where he had explained that he was putting together a surprise party for Aerin's birthday, and since he knew that it wasn't always financially convenient for her to drive down too often, he was willing to pay for her to fly to Nashville and back, as part of Aerin's birthday gift. She had agreed to accept the offer only after some argument, because even though he had made the offer completely unprompted, she was determined not to do anything that would make him think of her as one of the gold-digging fame-whores that he seemed to have developed a blatant distaste for, judging by the conversation they'd had during his and Aerin's visit to Missouri over the Memorial Day weekend. He had been so direct about how happy he was that she wasn't pursuing him, like so many others did, and how glad he was that they had become friends, that any small hope she might have entertained had been snuffed out like a candle flame.