Chapter 6
“I understand.” With these words, the call ended. Half an hour later, a text arrived: “Headquarters approved. You’ll pilot tomorrow’s first flight to Paris.”
Meanwhile, I had safely landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport. The moment I landed, over a dozen Air France colleagues came to welcome me warmly.
This was my third time in Paris. Logically, I shouldn’t have known this city well, but looking at all these unfamiliar surroundings, I felt incredibly light. Because I knew that from today on, I only needed to live for myself.
At Pan American Airways, I had been the airline’s best flight attendant for seven consecutive years. Here, I could achieve the same. Moreover, I could now plan all the things I never had the chance to do with Thaddeus. Skiing, mountain climbing, skydiving, seeing the Northern Lights – so many possibilities…
But I never expected that on my second day in Paris, when I returned home after work, Thaddeus would be standing there. As a pilot, he never drank. Yet today, he reeked of alcohol. In just two days, he seemed to have aged considerably. He tried to approach me when he saw me. I instinctively stepped back.
“Claire, I was wrong,” he began. “These three years, I’ve been overly concerned with Scarlett. I thought I had feelings for her, but after you left yesterday, I realized it was all false. I saw in her who
you were eight years ago.”
“During these three years, you always outperformed me in company evaluations, which made me feel pressured. That’s why I wanted to mentor her, to make her become like you, even surpass you, so my pressure would decrease. But I’ve always loved you, and I never thought I’d marry anyone
else!”
“Before coming today, I brought my documents. I swear, if you’re willing, we can return home
immediately to register our marriage. This time, I won’t break my word.”
“About your work in Paris, I’ve already applied to headquarters to fly only Paris routes. If you don’t want that, I can resign immediately and come to France.”
“Please, give me a chance to correct my mistakes.”
Thaddeus was crying, but my heart remained cold. So this was the real reason for his emotional affair? Because I performed better at work, he felt pressured? So he fell for Scarlett and started neglecting me? What an absurd excuse.
Unspoken Farewell at 30,000 Feet
3.5%
But wrong is wrong. If mistakes could be easily corrected, what were these three years of mine for? From the moment I boarded that plane, we were already over.
“No need to say more. We can’t go back now.” “Mr. Pierce, we’re done!”
I smiled, stepped back, and entered my apartment. Thaddeus didn’t try to stop me. But that night, like a tree, he stood straight outside my door all night. Through wind and rain, he didn’t move. But what was the point? Some relationships, once missed, stay missed. And these three years, I’d given him seventeen chances, and he’d missed them all…
The next day, Thaddeus flew back home. But as he’d said, he began flying only Paris routes. Almost every week, he would arrive in Paris, and each time, he would stand outside my door all night, but I never opened it for him.
Later, my life in Paris fell into a rhythm. I got certified in scuba diving, flying, and gliding. In summer, I visited the Rhine River.
