Chapter 22

I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. I had imagined how it would be like, but being scared wasn't in my mind. Despite sitting in a comfortable first-class seat, I was terrified for the takeoff. Killian was sitting behind me his back to me.

I thought about changing my seat and sitting next to Killian but I wasn't sure if he would like that. I drank some water to wet my dehydrated mouth. I looked out the window but I saw nothing other than the wings of the airplane. I tried to sleep off the anxiety which just made me imagine crazy things.

I can't do this.

“Killian?”

“What, Joyce?”

“Is it...really...uh mandatory for me to go? I mean ah I could stay at the office.

You know, What would I even do there?” I said trying to convince him that I'm not even useful for this business trip.

“You will entertain me," I felt my cheeks redden and I was thankful that no one was hearing what he was saying.

Entertain me? What is this guy thinking?

“With your clumsiness, you will keep making a fool out of yourself that I will not be bored at all,” said Killian finishing his initial speech.

This time I blushed out of embarrassment as what he said was very different from what I imagined when he said 'entertain'. I was very glad that he wasn't seeing my beetroot face because I had no thoughts of sharing my rather wild imaginations.

“What were you thinking?”

“Nothing!”

“Come here.”

“I am very comfortable here, thank you.” I refused his offer because knowing him it was to tease me.

“It's an order, not a request Joyce,” he said in a serious tone.

I stood up from my seat and went to hi stayed silent for a few minutes while I just stared at him in an attempt to figure out what he wanted and why he called me here.

“First time?” asked Killian already knowing what was happening to me.

“What first time?” I replied acting like I didn't understand what he was saying.

“Is it your first time on a plane?” he asked.

“...yes,” I replied looking at my hands.

I hated this feeling, being inferior to someone. It has always been like this. Whether someone said it or not, it was something that has been with me since I was a kid. My mom worked three to four jobs to support us, and she did her best to get me the best school clothes and everything else I needed. But the fact that my mom wasn't as rich as the other mom's in the school made me a target for bullies.

It didn't matter if my mom worked day and night to make me learn in that school. It didn't matter if my mom had to skip meals so I could eat or it didn't matter if she had to save up for months to buy me a new shoe because for my snob bullies I was always inferior.

“You can sit beside me if you want, I know how scary it is for you,” he said making me question if something happened to him.

Why is he being so kind these days?

“Thank you,” I replied thanking him for understanding how scared I was.

When the plane took off, I instinctively held on to something: Killian's hand that was on the armrest. Once I realized my mistake, I tried to let go but Killian held on to my hand. This made me smile, he wasn't making fun of me.

“You know I've always been curious, who do you eat lunch with? Do you have any friends?” asked Killian with a puzzled look.

“With Kate, and yes she is the only person I've befriended,” I replied ashamed of my antisocial nature.

“Kate like the HR director?” he asked to confirm what I said was true.

“Yes, Kate the HR director,” I answered not understanding why he had a confused look on his face.

“That's very odd. She is not the kind of person that is friends with my secretaries. She usually hates them.” he explained why he was confused.

“Really? I thought she was, I mean she is so bubbly and kind to everyone. She even greeted me at the entrance on the interview day to show me the way.” I answered unable to believe that she hates his secretaries.

“Maybe she thinks you're special,” he replied giving a reason for why Kate did what she did.

“That can't be the case,” I denied the thought that I was special.

“If you insist,” said Killian turning on his laptop. He had let go of my hand making me feel a little sad. I don't even know why I was feeling sad. We got on the flight at 8 in the morning and since it was a 9-hour flight, I intended to get some shut-eye.

I looked at Killian as he was typing on his laptop and wanted to ask him if he was going to rest. I was kind of worried he was overworking himself. What baffles me is the things I've thought about him at first, I always thought he was all talk and no work. I always thought that he would just drink, party, and be a playboy, but I was wrong to think that.

Killian wasn't what I imagined him to be. Although my thoughts had some truth as a base, like him being a player, he was a caring person and he cared about other people, he had a best friend he cared about and an older brother he looked up to.

Thinking of these things that made Killian different from the evil boss I imagined him to be, I felt myself get consumed by a black abyss that brought rest to my rather overthinking mind. I felt my head slowly fall to the side before finally resting on Killian's shoulder. He didn't push me or try to wake me up like I thought he would, instead he just let me lean on him.