Life is a Runway

"Of course I can... and I will, for as long as you will have me; I promise."

Fay had finally found back her lost smile. "Good! That's settled... now eat! Our meals are turning cold."

For their finale, after diner, they were gazing at the Prague nightline from the top of the Petrin Lookout Tower. Samuel was leaning on her and both of them were oblivious to the other tourists and sightseers.

"This might very well be the most beautiful city I will ever see. I will never thank you enough for today, darling."

"The pleasure is truly all mine, baby." She slowly moved to face him, turning her back to the City. "Sammm?"

"Yes, Fay?"

"I love you. All of me... is yours. Promise you will never leave me, please."

Samuel was lost in thought for a second... scream, cheer, kiss... he wanted to do it all! He finally settled for his simple, heartfelt truth. "Fay, I will love you forever and never, ever, leave you; I promise."

"Do you mean it?"

"Of course I do!" He chuckled at that one. She pinched his nose.

"You know what I mean... you keep worrying about our future in terms of me or my wealth... but what about you?"

"Fay, I can learn a language, I can keep a job, I don't live with my parents anymore. My life is here." He kissed her softly. "Right here."

4. The stall

"Sweetheart, what is happening between you and your phone? At the tavern yesterday, on the road this morning and all day in Prague... you keep shutting it off or look like you want to pulverize the poor thing!"

"Nothing that concerns us." During their last few days together, Samuel had not heard that snapping tone of finality from her. He now knew well enough to leave this matter alone.

But it was obviously eating at Fay, who was lost in thought... so much so that she did not even notice or comment his prudent night driving.

The next clue came to Samuel when they rolled slowly through the AeroKlub. A CHC EC155 VIP helicopter was parked and idling, clearly indicating that the corporate executive carrier would take-off sooner rather than later. Fay cursed something inscrutable and then mumbled angrily "...nooo! He didn't!!!"

Samuel had also caught on, recalling that CHC is a carrier company known, amongst other services, for ferrying personnel to off-shore installations. "Baby, is something happening at work?"

She whipped her head back to silence him with a glare of anger... only for Samuel to see it devolve into anguish, as if Fay had only seconds to deliberate something of vital importance. "Yes, Sam... and I want you to stay close to me, please." As soon as they parked the SUV and were outside, she latched on his arm with more grip than mere tenderness. She was worried, and she was contagious.

A tall man was sitting on one of the chairs, under their trailer's awning and exterior light. He stopped reading his document and rose to welcome them with an obvious stare of disappointment that he was doing no effort to conceal. Fay let go of Samuel and spoke first. "Goede avond, papa."

Their embrace was decorous, at best. "Fay..." and then his attention focused on her escort "... and you are?"

"Samuel Adams, Mr. Aarden, pleasure meeting you." He automatically extended his hand, which the visitor shook as an obvious diplomatic necessity.

Fay seemed worried that a public scene or even a scuffle might break out. "Samuel, this is my father, Liam Aarden. Papa, Samuel is our team tow-pilot and was kind enough to accompany me to Prague today. Have you been here long?"

"It is of no importance... we have matters to discuss that are, however."

"Then please, come on in..." Samuel earnestly suggested; only to be figuratively shot at by two glances instead of one. He shrugged off that first affront.

(Geez! What do they expect? We come in arm in arm and there is only one bed made in the trailer... all right, you two, I'll make myself disappear if that's what you wish!)

Not that Samuel could have done much to intervene between Fay and her father: as soon as they were all seated at their small table, they both launched verbal assaults at each other in feverish Dutch. Setting aside that second affront, Samuel took the time to size up his would-be father-in-law. He was a stern, tall, stoic man, the very image of the word discipline. And one of the obvious goals of that discipline was to ward off the passage of time. He had the same waistline as Samuel, a full head of light-brown hair devoid of a single speck of gray, a face where imperfections had all been obliterated, immaculate clothing of professional chic and an impeccable wall of whitened teeth.

But, whereas Fay had fallen back to the pleading tone of an offspring seeking his parent's approval, both his voice and gaze were near absolute zero in terms of warmth. And he had the obvious advantage of added experience in verbal sparring on top of paternal authority, which he was using without mercy. Fay was being verbally trounced, just as Samuel recalled seeing her after their big fight, and his heart took over his brain.

"Enough." Samuel had not shouted, not gestured... but he might as well, so immediate was the impact on the Aardens, both shocked silent.

"I beg your pardon, young man?"

"You heard me, Mr. Aarden. You have no cause to abuse Fay in such a manner... because even if I can't understand Dutch, what is happening here is brutally obvious."

"Do you have any idea who you are speaking to?"

"Yes, sir, and it does not matter. I happen to work, every day, with people who would probably not even give YOU the time of day, and yet they still have the wisdom, the dignity and humanity to treat me, or any other collaborator, with politeness and respect. Your daughter is a professional and, right now, she is also a very proud representative of her country at the world stage. She is not your little girl whom you just caught with her hand in the cookie jar. And the worst of it is, I'll bet you would show more deference and etiquette to that poor sap of a pilot who's obviously being paid to sit and wait for you, out there on the tarmac. You ought to be ashamed of yourself!"

Fay's father was destabilized enough to retort a disparaging comment that made her cringe... but Samuel caught on the word "echtgenoot".

"Aaah... your taunting me that I'm not her husband, I'll wager. Once again, sir, you have it all wrong: instead of taunting, you should be thanking your lucky stars. You see, sir, if I indeed was her husband, that would mean that we would be seeking to adopt children... you do understand that it is the only use matrimony has for Fay and myself, right?

Liam Aarden gasped. Fay was petrified.

"Sir, you should know that NOBODY - and I mean NOBODY - will EVER speak to my wife in this way. So, if we were married right this instant, I would be taking you to task instead of gently explaining you savoir-vivre, like a patient parent does to a child; YOU would be out of our lives, including your grandchildren's; and since Fay is keeping mute in all this, I suspect that she would tear my heart out, for treating her daddy dearest this way, and then cast me out to the dog house for the rest of my married life... so, you see, it's a good thing for us all that we're not entangled in that situation."

Now was the time for his great exit. He rose. "Now, if you will both excuse me, I refuse to be privy to any more of this. Fay, if you still want to talk to me, you know where I will be. Sir, I hope that when we meet again, it will be under circumstances that allow us to shake hands and mean it. I'll let you finish this, in whatever language you choose. Good night."

---

When Fay walked up to Samuel in the hangar, he was still too upset to perform any maintenance work and polishing Betrouwbaar's propeller to a furious and overzealous shine. She had changed, appeared ready to leave and had obviously been crying. "Sam?"

"Did he hurt you?"

"NOOO! You can cut out the boy scout act!" She paused after that outburst, with the reboot look Samuel was now almost familiar with, before carrying on. "But... I am grateful that you stood up for me, Sam... it was incredibly stupid and amazingly brave. I wish you would have stayed with me... I needed you near me, Sam."

"I strongly believe I did you a favor, Fay... I would have not stood by idly for more of... whatever that was."

"I will take your word for it and I believe you."

"So, I see this is goodbye... I am allowed to know about it or is it confidential information?"

She sneered. "Fuck that crap... it will all be public in about six weeks anyways... NAM is under review for lowering still the gas extraction volume in Groningen. But angry residents will be taking NAM and its parent companies to the Supreme Court; they will seek an order to cease gas extraction altogether, based on the earthquake risks involved."

"And I suppose that would be bad news for Shell, and probably for the whole of the Netherlands."

"Half of the country's domestic consumption comes from Groningen, Sam..."

"Wow! My brand new girlfriend is tied to a national crisis! How cool is that!?!"

"Do not jest, please!"

"It's the best I can do, Fay, because every fiber of my being screams for me to throw myself at your feet and beg you not to leave me stranded in a stranger country with nobody to talk to."

"I'm sorry, Sam, I had not thought about that... in fact, I never think about how my decisions impact you... some girlfriend, huh?" She was unable to join him in banter and was about to cry again, holding back tears with sniffles.

"Oh no you don't! Fay Aarden, as of tonight, I am the only one who can be the judge of your girlfriend rating and, for your information, that rating is off the charts! Now, are you compelled to testify or something? Do you expect me to bring you oranges and tulips while you sit in jail?"

"Nooo! You big dummy!" She punched him in the shoulder and laughed. It felt good to both of them. "But the legal team expects a review of our geophysics literature to assess responsibility. We start tomorrow morning and it will last more than one day, especially if we go back to the beginning."

"So, why do you look so upset? That's not so bad, is it?"

"Well... for one thing, they don't really want to hear what I have to say, Sam... I have seen the public research, the recent reports at least, and they were accurate and well-done."

"So you tell them that, and you tell it with your proud, commanding tone that always gets me to do anything for you. Remember your audience: don't do law for them and make sure as hell they don't do geology for you. Command respect, Fay, from all..."

"But why me? We have dozens of experts, most more senior than me, and Papa ruins my championship..."

"Maybe there lies a personal issue you two need to resolve but, on the whole, I think he trusts you more than those senior people. If I'm right, that's a good thing..."

"It so happens he told me the same argument. And he is a fatuous jerk, but not a liar... to me, anyway."

"Do you want me to apologize to him before you go?"

"You will do no such thing! If anything, I think you impressed him a little. Regarding Papa, just... lay low, OK?"

Samuel mimed his assent and kissed her. Fay had still more to say, however.

"Sam... I'm sorry I did not stand up to him for you... I am not ashamed of us... but I... don't know... I..."

He hushed her with a finger on her lips and a smile of whitewashing forgiveness. "I've had time to cool my jets on that issue... it's a lot to ask to pass from avowed girlfriend to challenging parents in the whole of three hours - I don't think even your Porsche shifts that fast!"

She kissed his finger with lips of pure need. "See? That's why I need you near me... what I am going to do without you, Sam?"

"Hey, this is not Casablanca... we will be apart for ten days, maybe a little more. I am not going anywhere, Fay... I promised, remember? And, between you and me, there is no bad ending for you in this."

"How can you say that?"

"Because if Groninguen is closed, Shell will need gas and you, my sexy geoscientist, will become super-important!" He was laughing at his own foolishness.

"Silly." She hushed herself shut with his finger, before adding "... say, Sammm?"

"Yes?"

"The children... were you really thinking what you said, or just making an argument?"

"Both, baby. We have never talked about it between ourselves but, yes, ever since we talked about marriage at diner, that idea got ingrained in me. I had promised to listen to you, so I did not bring it up at the time."

"I love you Sam... and you are very good to me." She hugged him, so tight he grimaced... she was strong. "I will miss you SO MUCH! I don't want to go..."

"But you must... go now, before we change our minds and the economy of the Netherlands collapses. I love you, Fay. Be safe."

"Fly safely, mijn betrouwbaar." Her soft kiss of goodbye followed, and she left for the tarmac. Samuel just sat, numb and utterly alone, on the wing strut of his plane.

---

Zbraslavice, May 26th, 2017

My beloved Fay,

I have just finished my first supper without you - a spaghetti that ought to last me throughout the week-end, at least - and I decided to write to you daily letters of my time here without you.

Are you surprised? I am, but you would think that two people that pledge everlasting love to one another would be smart enough to take the time, in their whirlwind romance, to take note of each other's coordinates and set up communications! I know neither your home address in Groningen nor your phone number. And even if I did, I came here without my laptop and I have no mobile phone.

So, as a last resort, I am writing to your family estate in The Hague. Maybe you are currently residing there, since both Shell headquarters and the Supreme Court are seated there as well. If not, maybe your parents will forward my letters to you. I can only hope. Maybe we will soon be together and both laugh about this. Anyway, I promise that the first thing I do, after landing in Terlet, is to purchase a phone.

To start my day, I notified everyone of your withdrawal before this morning's briefing. The whole team and everybody at the Aeroklub wishes you well.

Today, the task was longer in your class, a 400 km race. I guess good conditions were expected, but I saw nothing but stratus while I towed. There were a couple of outlandings again and the recorded speeds were well below the 100 km/h mark. You would have hated it... but I would give anything to hear you rant about it right now. Happy, hopping mad or indifferent... I would take any amount of your company that I can get, Fay; the silence in here is oppressive.

Thankfully, I feel Morpheus will claim me soon... I have barely slept last night and I seriously pondered declaring myself unfit to fly; luckily, my workday was short and I did snooze in Betrouwbaar (while on the ground!). I hope I will have the joy of seeing you in my dreams.

Fay, I love you and I miss you madly. The wound of your absence is still so fresh that I am still contemplating the void, fearing it might be limitless. I will not dwell too much on this, however, because you probably had a hellish day today, and the last thing you need is added weight on your conscience.

In fact, I have never taken the time to tell you this, and there no easy way to do this without seeming condescending, but here goes: I am extremely proud of you and I admire you, for what you have overcome and who you have become. I have heard you admit that you are blessed, and that may be true, but never again say that you are an ugly person because that is simply not the case. You care, you push yourself to excel and you try to make the world a better place. And it is, with you in it.

It does not show on the letter (I hope!), but I snoozed a couple of times over the previous paragraph, so I will have to cut my writing short. I apologize and I promise to be in better shape for you tomorrow.

Good night and sweet dreams.

Yours forever,

Sam

---

Zbraslavice, June 4th, 2017

My beloved Fay,

Another day, another letter... the last one. After that... well, I hope to see you, soon, at the airfield. I really don't think I have the nerve to knock, unannounced, at your door in The Hague!

Today were the closing ceremonies and, as I watched Katrin Senne accept first prize in your class and heard the German national anthem being played, I could not help but remember that she had started ninth after task #1. I appreciate the irony - maybe you won't - that it really could have been you. We will just have to try again in two years.

In another bit of irony, today's flying weather was absolutely incredible. All the gliders took to the air, for one last time and the fun of it. I would have loved to have towed Senna under those big white cumulus clouds. I miss you like crazy, Fay. Even watching you fly from the ground would have brought me joy and contentment, knowing that you are happy doing what you love.

It was quaint and very proper to hear the National anthems and see the flags raised, but the high point of the closing ceremonies was, would you believe, a rock concert by a U2 tribute band. It was actually pretty good! And when I heard the beautiful anthem of I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For, I looked for you... I would have given anything to slow-dance that song with you. I have already written this many times but it bears repeating: this place is just a deluxe tow-pilot gig without you.

Speaking of which, I got a surprise from the AeroKlub, in the form of a check representing my share of the proceedings from the paying gliders that I towed. To be appreciated this way soothed some of my pain. Of course, that check goes directly to Onno and GeZC... the last thing we both need is a fiscal mess to tarnish your reputation, ha ha ha!

My hand is getting used to this daily writing and I was thinking, in a weird sense, that maybe I feel a little like Grandpa must have felt, writing to loved ones without being exactly sure if the letters would be read and wondering what kind of a homecoming would await him. Another irony for my trip.

I look fondly at the word homecoming. Tomorrow, I fly back towards you and it truly feels like going home. Fay, I realize now that you have made flying fun again for me and you have made Europe come alive in my heart. As if I needed another reason to love you!

All throughout this letter, I have been talking about trivia or myself. I hope this does not occlude the fact that I think about you all day long and you invade all my dreams now.

My darling, I love you and I will love you to my very last breath. This means that your absence still leaves a huge void in my heart and soul, but it also means that I would agree to anything for you to be happy. As you have now returned to your professional life, I feel obliged, just like in our beginning, to offer you a do-over if you want one. If our madness was the result of confinement in a trailer abroad, then just say so and I will let you find happiness wherever it awaits you. I will always be your friend and, even though I once said this isn't Casablanca... we will always have Prague.

If you still ache for me, then I will be the happiest man in the world to hear you chew me up for writing such melodramatic crap and I will spare no effort to bring you joy, to make you feel loved and to make you realize just how beautiful a person you are, inside and out.

I guess I have found what I was looking for and I have you to thank for it.

I will fly safely, as always... besides, since you've been gone, I've been toiling non-stop at Betrouwbaar's engine and she flies almost like new!

See you soon.

I love you.

Sam

5 - The recovery

There is a non-logical but proven fact about voyages: return trips, even though they have the same distance as the departure, are always shorter. And even though the homecoming at Terlet airfield was more manly than Samuel would have wished, it was warm and heartfelt all the same. This was all repeated at work on the following morning. It truly was a homecoming. But one without Fay so far.