Deceptions, Lies, and Butterflies

Melissa awoke to a throbbing headache. She figured she deserved that and much more. She called down to the front desk to ask if they could send up some aspirin. The desk clerk said he would send some up. He then asked if she would also be checking out that day. She was dumbfounded. Also check out? Why…? When she asked him what he meant he revealed that John had checked out and arranged for a car to take him to the airport. She hung up the phone in disbelief. She went to the connecting door and knocked. There was no response. She went out in the hall and found the maid service cart in front of his door. She peeked in and saw that the room was a mess. There were flowers scattered on the floor by one wall along with the remnants of a vase. Just inside was an overturned picnic basket, along with a bottle of Dr Pepper. Oh God. He had been planning a romantic day for her before…. Now he was gone. She slowly returned to her room. He was really gone. He truly never wanted to see her again. She called the concierge and asked for a car to take her to the airport. She wasn’t staying without John. She couldn’t stay. If she had to fly standby, she would. But right now all she wanted to do was just go home.

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John sat in his seat on Oceanic Flight 815. He couldn't believe what had happened, as he sat numbly waiting for the plane to finish boarding so he could get the hell out of there. Glancing up, he saw a handsome young man with cropped dark hair placing a bag in the overhead bin. He made eye contact with John and gave him a woeful smile. John couldn't help noticing certain sadness in the younger man's eyes. Seemed he wasn't the only one who was feeling blue. Averting his eyes, John pulled the flight brochure from the pocket in the backseat before him. He figured he might as well read about what to do, in case of an emergency. Wouldn't that just top it all, if the plane went down? However, as he started to open the pamphlet, he dropped it on the floor. He leaned over, trying to retrieve it, but it was out of reach.

Melissa was grateful to have a seat on the flight. It was the last one out for the day and she couldn’t stand the thought of staying one more night. She was in the tail section, which normally she hated, but she didn’t care this time. As she walked down the aisle toward her seat she saw John. He was bending down to retrieve something from the floor. It took every ounce of self-control not to stop and help him. He looked as heartbroken as she felt. She was about to talk to him when someone behind her asked her to keep moving. She continued on to her seat in the back of the plane. Sitting down, she buckled up, leaned her head against the window, and cried.

Finally drying her tears, Melissa pulled her journal out of her purse and ripped out several pages. Taking a pen she composed a letter to John, one that told him everything. She told him about Stacy and how horrid she was, about how she had originally planned on trying to stay in Sydney, about how she hated the deception the minute she met him, and finally about how much she loved him and that no matter what happened she always would. It took nearly two hours to get the letter the way she wanted it, but it was finally finished. After giving the letter to the flight attendant to deliver to John, she tried to get some much-needed sleep.

The flight attendant approached John's seat and handed him an envelope. He had taken it from the attendant and was about to ask where it was from, when they suddenly hit turbulence. Shoving the envelope into his backpack, which was open on his lap, he quickly zipped the bag before gripping the sides of his seat. He had flown many times before, but this was the worst he had experienced. Could this day get any worse? Just then a gush of wind blew in, as the tail section broke off. Oh, God! John glanced over his shoulder as a man went flying into the abyss. ‘Melissa!’ he screamed silently, as he closed his eyes and held on for dear life. A moment later something struck him on the right side of the head, knocking him out cold.

Melissa screamed as the tail section fell from the sky. She had felt like dying when John rejected her; now she was going to. She was going to die and he would never know how much she truly loved him, and how much she grieved for hurting him so. That was her last thought as she blacked out.