after a few disagreements with david, nic's dad, about rehab and his son's current situation concerning drugs, they both had agreed on having nic fly to his mother, vicki, to continue with his treatment over in los angeles. the day came sooner than expected, and karen drove nic to the airport, his bags fully packed, and made sure he checked in

the last time the boy had flown must've been five or more years back, he couldn't really recall where he'd went, though. the ritual was always the same; he got his bags and then his tickets and then he hugged his dad, mumbled their usual "everything"'s and then he would part with them to find his gate

the flight had gotten delayed for about 30 minutes, but nic didn't mind too much, he had enough time to buy himself a sandwich and wait for his movie to download because he wasn't one to raw-dog his flights. when the boarding began, he flashed the lady his passport and ticket and walked through the drizzle of rain to the plane

on his ticket it said 19A, a window seat. overall, the flight seemed to not be fully booked, so there was a rather promising chance of him getting the row all to himself. the tall boy heaved his luggage into the overhead compartments before letting his sore body fall down in the cushioned seat, breathing out a huff and ruffling his slightly damp curls before beginning to make himself comfortable. his headphones, his phone, one of these neck-rest pillows

due to his headphones nic completely missed the turmoil that was occurring in the back of the plane; only when the aircraft had reached its cruising altitude, and a stewardess guided you into the seat next to him, he looked up, slightly confused, pulling the headphones off his curls with a pained grimace as they tangled in his hair

"hello," he regarded you with a polite smile, listening intently to the flight attendant as she explained the reasoning behind your change of seats, nodding along

"oh, well," he looked back at you with a friendly smile, "make yourself comfortable"