Consequences of Random Events

To the person in the center seat

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"Hey, I'll trade you these Sun Chips for your granola bar."

"Done and done! I don't even have to stop and think about that."

The girl sitting next to me on the plane--Jennifer--boarded the plane in Miami with me. We were seated next to each other on that flight, had lunch together in Atlanta, and then headed for the gate for the flight to Denver.

No, we were not traveling together. We had never met before leaving Miami. I had spent a week down there for work--an assignment to troubleshoot a company's local office. The problem was easy to diagnose--the manager was an asshole. The problem was, he was the son of the company's president.

Yeah. I had no idea what recommendation I could make, other than, "Hey, Mr. President, did you know your son is an asshole?" As a consultant, I can say that kind of thing, so I might.

Jennifer had boarded a plane in Costa Rica and flown to Miami. She was visiting a friend there--in Costa Rica. Now flying home to Denver. Same as me.

I had the aisle seat. For a while I thought I might have an empty middle seat next to me. You know how when you think that might happen, you scan the people coming down the aisle? Then you see the one. A 300-pound dude, a mother with a small screaming child, or a ZZ-Top dropout who may or may not have bathed yet this month.

To my surprise, none of those appeared. I was still looking past the passengers near me when Jennifer bent over and motioned that the seat in the middle was hers. She was cute. Not at all the fulfillment of my worst fears.

I stood to allow her to get into her seat. It is the gentlemanly thing to do. Also the best way to check her out.

Really cute. Late 20's, 5'5", or about that. Fit. Brunette with lighter highlights.

"Hi, I'm Matt."

"Jennifer."

We talked all the way to Atlanta. At the next gate, after lunch together, we compared seat assignments. Nowhere near each other.

"Come on, Matt, let's go see about getting seats together."

That's how I learned her last name: Petersen. Jennifer Petersen.

Amazingly, there were a few empty seats on the plane. Unfortunately, I was on the window now. The sacrifices we make for a cute girl!

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Once we were in the air, we had a chance to talk more. I learned Jen--her preferred nickname--was 27. Graduated from Fresno State. B.S. in computer science. Masters in IT Management. Working in Denver for a startup high tech company with serious VC funding.

Cute and brilliant. I like that in a girl!

"I've done all the talking, Mark. Please tell me about you."

"Well, I got a degree in Organizational Behavior, then a master's and a Ph.D. Boring, one-track educational history. I work as a consultant and manage to keep busy."

"Do you like being a consultant?"

"I spent the first five years with a company. Loved the experience. OB is not like IT. OB gets cut first if business slows. When that happened, I decided to hang out my shingle."

"How has it worked out?"

"Eight years now. Every year I have made at least 40% more money than I did as an employee. I like being my own boss, too."

"Do you work from home?"

"Yes. That's another perk."

"Family?"

"No. Never married. Not living with anyone. Just me. I bought a home a few years ago. Sometimes a cousin drops in for a free room overnight. How about you?"

"Not married, but I have a boyfriend. Sort of."

I laughed. "What does 'sort of' mean?"

"We've been together for three years. I thought we would get married, but when I ask about it, he shrugs it off and says marriage isn't for him. That's part of the reason I went to Costa Rica."

"He's there?"

"No, my closest friend lives there. Her husband is with the State Department and is assigned there now. I went to talk to her about it."

"Did she give you advice?"

"Sort of."

"Do you have any friends who don't fall into the 'sort of' category?"

Her turn to laugh. "She said I needed to decide what was most important to me. My most cherished goal in life."

"You wanted her to tell you what to do."

"Right. Exactly! She's smart, though, right?"

"She is. That's excellent advice. What matters most to you?"

"I'm still working on that, but I went down there thinking marriage was it."

"Now you aren't sure?"

"No. I said that wrong. I thought marriage was it. Alone. I spent a few days with them and their two kids...."

Her eyes filled with tears. I didn't see our talk getting this serious. This deep.

"I came away from that realizing it isn't just marriage I want. It's a family. All through college I was fed this feminist stuff about being a professional woman and not needing a man or children. How they just get in the way of our goals. Only now I see my career goals are not as fulfilling as I thought."

"Is it just your experience there in Costa Rica that did this?"

"No. A growing feeling inside. I loved my family growing up. My parents. My brother and sister. I was lucky. Such a good family. I was surrounded by love. That has to mean more than anything else.

"Tell me about your family, Mark."

"I have two sisters. Both older."

"You're the baby of the family."

"Yeah, but only by two years. My parents are wonderful. I had a good childhood."

"Since we're on such a serious topic, what are your most cherished goals?"

"Well ... I haven't met the right woman yet, but I want to get married. I'm 35 years old. I thought I'd be married by now. Children, too. Maybe it isn't meant to be for me."

What the hell? Now I had tears in my eyes. What kind of flight was this?

"When I said 'sort of' about my boyfriend ... I'm going home to break up with him. We don't want the same things, but I hate being single. Hate it!"

Now it was her time for tears.

I reached over and took her hand.

"Look at us. We just met today and managed to make each other cry!"

"Not a bad start."

"Start?"

"For a new friendship. That is, if you ask me out."

"I don't see how I can. After all, you have a boyfriend. However, I'll give you my number. If and when you're truly single, I hope you'll call."

Jen was laughing and wiping away tears. "Fair enough! That'll give me more incentive to be single again."

The plane landed and we taxied to the gate.

"Mark, I

will

call you. I promise."

----[]---------[]----

A few days later I handed in my written report and met with the president of that company to give him a more direct analysis.

"The problem with that office, I'm sorry to say, boils down to one thing, Your son. I can't think of a more accurate summary than to say he's an asshole, but you know that, don't you?"

He smiled. "Yes, Mark. I had hoped he could find his way out of being an asshole. I was a fool for expecting change when he perceived he had a paved road to my seat. Thanks for your honesty."

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Two weeks later, I was packing for an early flight to Seattle. My phone rang. A number with no name.

"Hello, this is Matthew Williams."

"Hey Matt. It's Jen. I'm calling to ask you to go to dinner with me this week."

"I would love to. I'm catching a 7 am flight to Seattle in the morning, but I'll be back Friday evening. Would Saturday work for you?"

"Perfect. I'll text you with when and where. Have a nice flight, Matt."

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I boarded my flight and found my aisle seat. There was a woman in the middle seat wearing a baseball cap and looking down at her magazine. I put my bag in the storage above and my briefcase under the seat in front. Then I sat.

I glanced at the woman beside me, intending to say hello. I was looking into Jen's eyes.

"How did you ..."

"I promise I'm not stalking you. Well, maybe I am, a little. I had more vacation days available, and it occurred to me the best way for us to get to know each other might be to hop on the same plane again. Look, if you don't want me coming with you to Seattle, I'll get off now."

"I think it's genius! How did you get a seat next to me?"

"I may have told the gate agent I was trying to surprise my fiancée. I figured the truth wouldn't cut it. Sorry. However, that also got me early boarding so I could be here before you."

"Yet another brilliant move! This sounds fun. Better than my usual free time on consulting trips. Where are you staying?"

"I planned to just get a room once I got here. Hopefully near your hotel, to make it easy for us to get together."

"I have an idea. Hold on a second."

I dialed the number of my hotel in Seattle, asked a few questions and changed my room.

"Jen, I just changed my reservation. I have a queen-queen suite now. Would you like to take one of the queen beds, so we can spend evenings together? I'm excited to get to know you better."

"Matt, that's a lot ... I hope you don't feel backed into a corner. You don't have to do that for me."

"Nonsense. I'm thrilled to find you sitting next to me on another flight. This time I promise not to make you cry."

"I'll do my best as well. Thanks. I guess I should update you on one thing. I broke up with my boyfriend and moved into my own apartment last week. I waited to call you until that was done."

"We're both officially single. I like that. I didn't want to be part of a triangle."

"No, I get it. I would have felt the same way if you were the one in a relationship. Too messy!"

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We took a taxi to the hotel, and arrived a few minutes before 9. I wasn't staying at an airport hotel because I like this one a lot better and it's closer to my client's office.

When I called from the plane the hotel assured me I could check in early--one of the perks of staying there several times--so we got that done and went up to the suite.

"So, this is how the other half lives," said Jen.

"Hey, I upgraded to this!"

"What were you in before you upgraded?"

"A junior suite." Yeah, I saw the irony in that.

"Jen, I have a meeting with my client at 10. We're supposed to do a working lunch and be done by 2, then the same thing tomorrow. The last day, I planned to check off a bucket list thing, then fly home Friday. Is your return also on Friday?"

"Yeah ... but I had to guess on your return flight. I picked the 1:20 pm flight."

"Are you clairvoyant? Since I have to leave in just a few minutes, make yourself at home. Have you been to Seattle before?"

"No. Never."

"If you want, do a little tourist research and we can talk about what you want to see when I get back. While we're here, you're my guest. This is a date, and I'm paying. Ok?"

"Thanks, Matt. I'll worry about lunch, though, and I'll google tourist info."

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I got ready quickly and took a cab. My meeting went great. I always appreciate clients who can keep to a schedule. I was surprised at how excited I was to get out of the cab at the hotel and open the door to the suite.

There was Jen, sitting on a sofa, reading something on her iPad.

"Hey, Matt! How was your meeting?"

"Great, but I've been looking forward to getting back here with you. What do you want to see?"

"I only have three things: the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, and the Great Wheel. What's on your list, especially for all-day on Thursday?"

"How about an afternoon bay cruise tomorrow? On Thursday I had thought of renting a car and driving down to Mt. St. Helens. I want to visit the volcano observation point. I visited there once when I was about ten years old. I'd like to see how it's changed."

"I love those ideas. Can we do a sunset cruise? That sounds really romantic."

"Let me take a look online. ... How about a 2-hour cruise on a sailing ship at sunset? There are two seats still available. 6 pm sailing."

"That sounds amazing. Is it too expensive?"

"Jen, I said this was my treat. You don't get to worry about the cost."

She stood and hugged me. "Thanks, Matt. Really. I know I kind of crashed your trip."

"And I'm thrilled you did. Let's go see those three places you listed. On our way to the front door, I want to talk to the concierge about a good place for dinner at Pike Place."

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The concierge made a reservation for us for 7 pm at Place Pigalle. He also booked tickets for us at the Space Needle observation deck, where we headed first.

Although I'd been to Seattle several times, I'd never done the Space Needle. It was a lot of fun. I have some familiarity with several places we could see from there, so I stood behind Jen and pointed them out to her. I had my hand on her shoulder as I pointed. The weather was perfect, so we had a great view of Mt. Rainier.

We stood for several minutes, then Jen turned and hugged me. Neither of us spoke. It was comfortable being with her.

From there we took a taxi to the Great Wheel. We had to stand in line for about 30 minutes, but we both loved it. The view over the harbor was incredible. I had my arm around Jen the whole time, and she was leaning into me. I loved watching the excitement in her eyes.

We walked across the street to Pike Place and explored all sorts of stores. The place is huge. I was surprised at how soon it was time for dinner.

We loved Place Pigalle. Jen had never had oysters on the half shell, but she was adventurous, so we shared an appetizer. I wished afterwards I had had my phone ready for when she tried the first one. The look on her face was hilarious. It was the texture, of course. That's what most people react to the first time.

I had salmon and Jen ordered a Duck Confit that she loved. She insisted on feeding me a taste. I think she intentionally dripped a little on my chin so she could lean in and lick it off.

In the taxi to our hotel, I had my arm around Jen. She leaned over and kissed me on the cheek.

"Thank you for a wonderful evening."

"I'm so glad you stalked me! This is a lot better than sitting in my room and dining alone. The exciting life of the consultant! This is like relationship immersion to get to know each other."

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We sat on the sofa and talked until almost midnight. Jen was so easy to talk to. I had a chance to ask her more about her work. I found out she was training to take over the IT department at her company when her chief retires next year.

"Does it worry you to take over that position?"

"Not really. There are some changes I would like to make, but I don't want to get pushy under his watch. He's a great guy and was with his previous company for twelve years. A ton of hands-on experience. I've learned a lot from him."

She asked me more about my consulting work. Not with a specific client--she was well-aware that most of my work would be covered by non-disclosure agreements, so she kept her questions generic. She was curious about how I got new clients and the kinds of things I had been asked to do. She asked a lot of great questions.

I looked at the clock and realized how late it was. "Which bed do you want, Jen?"

"Since you're older, you should probably be closer to the bathroom."

I looked at her, not sure what to make of that. She was laughing!

"I just wanted to bust your chops for being an old man of 35."

"So, it's going to be like

that

with you," I said, laughing. Jen was a lot of fun.

"Did you bring pajamas, Jen?"

"Yeah, just in case. Glad I did. I'll go change."

We both got in bed and turned out the lights. Then we kept talking. I think I fell asleep first.

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We got up at 8 am and had breakfast downstairs.

I got ready to leave for my meeting. "Jen, you can always take a taxi and go shopping or explore. Do you need any money?"

"No. I have money. Thanks anyway. I think I'll just hang out here and read and nap. I'd rather explore with you."

When I returned that afternoon, Jen ran to meet me and hugged me.

"I missed you. Isn't that funny? We've only spent a little time together, but it has been so much fun. What do you want to do this afternoon?

"We have the cruise at 6 pm. That leaves from the Waterfront Park area. I saw it yesterday as we were walking. This isn't a dinner cruise, though. We can either get something light before, or taxi back here to the hotel and have dinner from room service."

"Let's do room service. I'd like that. How about spending more time at Pike Place?

"Good idea. We only scratched the surface there."

"I know I keep saying this, but thanks, Matt. I'm having a lot of fun, but mostly I'm having a great time with you."

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The cruise was amazing. It was a tall sailing ship. The sunset was pretty and beautifully scenic from the ship.

Jen and I were standing side-by-side at the deck rail, taking in the gorgeous scenery. My arm was around her. I turned her towards me.

"Jen, I haven't said this enough but thank you for getting on the plane and coming here with me."

I was looking into her eyes, and she put her arms around me. As we looked into each other's eyes, it was one of those movie moments when the stars slowly move toward each other ... and kiss.

It was a nice kiss. Afterwards, she put her head against my chest. We stood there, arms around each other, without saying anything. I knew I was quickly developing feelings for her.

When the sailboat docked, Jen and I walked off holding hands. I was happy, and it was obvious Jen felt the same way.

When we got to the hotel we ordered room service.

My meetings were done for that trip, so we talked about the next day, Thursday.

"Are you sure you want to go to Mt. St. Helens tomorrow? We can do something else, if you prefer. Please be honest."

"I want to go. I was looking at the history of the 1980 explosion and David Johnston, the volcanologist who was on duty that morning and died. I want to see it. Did you know he took someone else's shift that day? He wasn't supposed to be working the day he was killed."

I went online to reserve a rental car for the next morning. I knew the drive was about 2.5 hours each way, so we planned to have breakfast at 8 and then take a taxi to get the rental car about 9.

Room service arrived. The suite had a small dining table, so we put the food there.

"Just a minute, Jen."

I walked over to the windows and opened all the drapes. I turned down all the lights, except one near the dining table that had a dimmer switch.

"I'm impressed, Matt. This is romantic with that view, the lights, ... and being here with you."

We talked as we ate.

"Jen, what has been your favorite thing so far?"

"That's easy! It was when you kissed me on our sunset cruise. We've done so many fun things, but that was by far the best moment."

She had tears in her eyes. So did I.

I stood, moved around the table, leaned over, and kissed her again. "I think we need more of that, don't you?"

She stood and put her arms around me. "I do, Matt. You are an easy man to fall for. I knew that on that first flight from Miami. I knew I had to see you and spend time with you. I clearly have strong feelings for you."

We kissed. This was a long kiss. Our tongues were tentative at first, then no longer strangers. It was a wonderful kiss!

When it ended, Jen laughed. "We should probably finish dinner. We ordered a dessert to share that has ice cream on it."

I wanted to say something about my feelings for her, but decided to wait until the next night, our last night in Seattle.

We got ready for bed at 11 that night and set our alarms for 7 am. As was the case the previous night, we continued to talk. Jen fell asleep first. She snored softly.

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