Chapter 2
INAUGURAL FLIGHT
Although a fair bit older than myself, Charlie had been a friend for many years and we maintained that friendship even after he left the newspaper business, meeting every three or four months for a few drinks, a meal and a chat. He liked to keep up with what was happening in the industry, not just in terms of which stories had been killed off, who was angling for what job but the seamier side too, who was sleeping with who - and why. Although he'd quietened down a bit as he got older, I knew from both the general gossip and from the odd stories he told me himself that in his hay-day he'd been a keen player in the bed-room stakes himself.
I had been on an assignment in South-East Asia and had got a few juicy bits of information that I was looking forward to passing on to him but as we ate we discussed the state of the world and the various ways our colleagues were reporting and mis-reporting it and it was only when we'd finished eating and exhausted the other topics that he asked me to tell him the unpublishable stuff.
I brought him up to date on the actual liaisons and then recounted the gossip, some of which made him chuckle and some of which brought a silent whistle of genuine surprise. When I'd finished he asked. 'And you, what have you been up to? Any interesting adventures?'
I told him about a particular girl I'd met at one of the functions I'd had to cover and as usual he wanted to know the precise detail of what had happened between us, who had done what to whom, when and how often - he was a great one for detail. I told him all that - and then added that after spending several nights together in my bed, nights that had been very hectic and totally satisfying, that she'd then suddenly vanished. I'd checked every source I could think of and though quite a few people knew her well, it seemed that nobody actually knew where she worked, or even where she lived.
I could see from the different, more intense expression on his face that my experience had got his interest but as I explained, it wasn't a great love affair, I had another leg of my assignment to move on to, the whole thing had made me curious rather than concerned. But then I asked him why he had reacted with such obvious interest to my little story - and he answered that it had reminded him of something very strange that had happened to him, when he was much younger - and naturally enough I asked him to tell me about it.
'It was on an inaugural flight, a particular airline's first flight on a particular route. Unlike the trips they put on these days, when they cram as many people as possible into the plane and as it was the high quality of in-flight service that the airline was keen to demonstrate, they had kept the numbers down. The seating had been arranged so that in each of the blocks of three seats the centre one was left vacant - and as whomever it was that was originally scheduled to sit with me failed to show up, although I was right at the back of the plane I ended up having the row to myself.
Planes didn't have the performance they do these days, needed re-fuelling more often for one thing, ten hours or so was the maximum I think. Anyway, on that flight the last leg was the long one, about seven or eight hours as I remember, flying through the night, scheduled to arrive just after dawn. During the early part of the flight we were all moving around, chatting to old friends, making new ones, the usual thing, only returning to our own seats when food was served. They gave us a slap-up meal of course and plenty of good wine to wash it all down, after which the hostesses collected plates and glasses and then lowered the cabin lights so we could sleep through the rest of the flight.
It wasn't my first trip to that part of the world but I was still excited by the chance to visit places and people I'd known - and I don't mind admitting that included on my list of places were one or two bars I'd frequented. Bars which had some of the most beautiful girls, all of who were highly skilled in the art of providing various sexual pleasures for men. So although the rest of the passengers turned off their reading lights, making the cabin quite dark, I was still wide awake, happily sipping the last of an excellent bottle of wine, thinking about the work ahead of me - and also anticipating some of the more exotic pleasures that I felt sure I'd soon be experiencing.
I lost track of time but it couldn't have been that long after most of the rest of the people had nodded off, when, probably a result of the combination of the effects of the good food, wine, the gentle hum of the engines and my increasingly erotic thoughts, I found that although I was just starting to feel a little drowsy I was also feeling very, very horny.
A few minutes later she silently appeared in the aisle beside me. Even by comparison with the rest of the hostesses - all of whom had obviously been picked for their looks as well as their proficiency - she was absolutely stunning. As I thought I'd had a go at chatting-up each of the hostesses on the flight and none of those I'd spoken to had been as gorgeous as the girl standing there I couldn't understand where she had come from - but decided that fairly academic question could be resolved later.
The airline's uniform was based on the traditional cheongsam, a figure-hugging dress made from brightly decorated silk, a feature of which were the thigh-high slits up either side - a leg-man's dream. In contrast and as though in an effort to disguise the fact that most Asian women have comparatively small breasts, the upper part fitted right up to the neck. This girl was the exception and even in the dim light she must have seen my eyes staring at the way the thin silk temptingly accentuated the full, upsweeping curves beneath it.
'May I?' She asked in a low, slightly husky voice, her eyes indicating the empty seats beside me and of course I said. 'Of course, please do.'
She sidled towards me, my eyes automatically dropping from the bulge of her breasts to admire the long, smooth length of thigh she exposed as she eased into the middle seat and settled herself. She smiled and asked. 'Not sleepy yet?'
'Not really, I was thinking about what I have to do - and looking forward to renewing some previous friendships.'
'Ah, so this is not your first visit.'
'That's right, I spent quite a while there a couple of years ago.'
'You enjoyed your stay?'
'Very much so.' I answered with a broad grin.
She gave me a knowing smile in return and asked. 'Am I right then in thinking one of the friends you referred to, would be Mr. Ong Chee?'
Chee was the owner of what was probably the best bar in town, at least of the bars that catered for more than just the drinking needs of a mainly western and more affluent clientele.
'You are, I was a frequent visitor to his establishment.'
'For food and drink?'
'Yes - and other things too.'