Manchester Airport was busier than usual today. At Terminal 2, ranks of chairs were filled with passengers desperate to board flights to warmer climates. People from all walks of life headed along the concourse. Black, White, Asian, singles, couples, entire families, a group of American tourists arguing over the most mystical of all British customs -- queuing, cancerously-tanned tourists drifting homeward on the fumes of suntan lotion, pale tourists arriving with the damp smell of a cloudy country clinging to them -and drifting serenely through the crowds, a church organist and his much-younger girlfriend.
"Well this is it!" Mia grinned as she and Gordon made their way to the departure gate.
"Can't wait to get away from this awful weather!" Gordon replied, fiddling with his boarding pass. It was the middle of April, but more like November. The rain had been relentless for the past few months, and showed no signs of easing.
They boarded the Jet2 737 for the four and a half-hour flight to Tenerife South. They were seated in seats D and E on row 12 in the middle of the aircraft, which happened to be the emergency exit row. To Mia's delight, she'd got the window seat.
"Oh nice!" she exclaimed, noting the larger amount of legroom.
"Yeah, I was determined that we weren't going to be crammed in like sardines for four hours," Gordon replied, putting his hand luggage in the overhead bin. "Also, not wanting to sound like an anti-social old git, but I'd rather not sit next to anyone else either. Last year I had to fly to Poland, to help restore an old organ in Krakow. The outbound flight was a nightmare. Got wedged next to a fifty-stone bloke for two hours."
"Also handy for other things," she winked at him as she fastened her seatbelt. "Our first holiday together. I can't believe it's actually happening. Oh Gordy, this is going to be unforgettable, I just know it."
The flight was fully-booked and it seemed to take an eternity for everyone to board. Gordon observed the other passengers with his usual cynical eye. As a frequent flyer, he'd seen it all. This flight was no different. A middle-aged man wearing a Panama hat was taking his time, fiddling with the overhead bin, completely oblivious to the fact he was blocking the aisle. A family of four behind him tutted impatiently. A couple of rows in front, a young blonde woman with false nails and surgically enhanced lips was taking selfies, no doubt for Instagram. Gordon raised an eyebrow as she pouted and tilted her smartphone, almost elbowing an elderly man in the face. Obviously an influencer of some sort, he assumed. And what could be more glamorous than a selfie on a charter flight to Tenerife?
Ah, the joys of modern air travel, Gordon thought to himself. And as soon as the seatbelt sign light goes out, folk will be up and heading to the loo.
Mia was more interested in looking out of the window.
"I want this to be a wonderful time, Mia. I hope it's as fun for you as it will be for me." He kissed her gently. "A week of sun, sea and lots of food. I just hope you won't be bored. I mean, there are excursions we can go on, you don't need to be stuck round the pool all day..."
She was quick to reassure him. "Gordy, that's perfection to me. Family holidays with my parents were never relaxing. Dad was an action man, always wanting to do adventure stuff -- paragliding, rock climbing. I never wanted to do anything like that. For one thing, I'm terrified of heights. So I was always dumped in the hotel's Kid's Club whilst they went off enjoying themselves. I never liked those activities. I just wanted to be on the beach. Best holiday I had was when I went to Turkey with Jenna and her parents when I was twelve."
"Well our hotel is right on the beach, so you're all sorted!" Gordon smiled back. "A full week away from St. Michael's Church and its organ! Finally my fingers can get a much-needed holiday. Plus, it'll be nice not to have Reverend Morris emailing all the time."
"His sermons never get any better do they?" Mia replied. "Jenna did say she was trying to help him there."
"Hmm, she needs to try harder." Gordon fastened his seatbelt. The vicar's wife had many talents, but improving her husband's sermons didn't seem to be one of them. He cast his mind back to Easter Sunday service. "Is Jenna still in the Guild Voices choir?"
"Yes. She really likes it. Their choirmaster Derek said she has a perfect voice."
Gordon chuckled to himself and wondered whether Jenna had worked her special magic on Derek. The fact she'd been using an egg vibrator during the Easter Sunday service seemed proof of that. Reclining in the seat, his mind briefly flashed back to his encounter with Harriet, his old crush. She'd be back in Australia now. He knew he'd never see her again. It was as if a long-abandoned loose end had finally been tied up -- an open door to his youth had closed. Her wise words about his relationship with Mia had emboldened him. Mia was his future now. No matter what happened. It was time to stop looking back.
He was shaken from his thoughts as the plane's engines spooled up and Mia grabbed his arm. "Ooh take-off. I love this part so much. I'm such a big kid. But it's so exciting!"
"Yeah. It is. I love it too."
The 737 roared down the runway and rose into the sky, climbing through the dense cloud.
Even when they had reached cruising altitude and levelled off, Mia's eyes remained fixated on the view from the window. Bright blue and nothing but a blanket of cloud obscuring the land far below.
Seconds after the fasten seatbelts sign went out, some passengers rose from their seats and headed for the toilets, just as Gordon had predicted.
