6 months ago Angela's life was perfect. She had a doting boyfriend, of whom she found herself growing more in love with everyday. A great job as a journalist working for a small news company, and a wonderful relationship with her boyfriends family, they met up each Sunday for mass and dinner after all.
6 months ago life was great, amazing even and it could only get better, but then her boyfriend, Joe Reagan, got shot in a gang related incident while serving on the force. Her relationship with his family suffered as a result and after she lost complete contact with them her life to a downward spiral from there, finally ending up with her back in Portland, 9 months pregnant with a deadman's child.
Now, here she sat, on flight 39, only 3 months after giving birth on her way to New York with an infant in her lap. On her way to meet the in-laws, who didn't even know she was coming.
" Attention all passengers we are 30 minutes away from JFK airport. At this time we now ask for all passengers to return to their seats. We would like to thank you for flying Air Delta, please buckle your seat belts and enjoy the remainder of your flight"
Angela sighed and readjusted her grip on her son. Her son, she still wasn't used to the entire idea of it. Being a mother, just a year ago she was living in New York, in herboyfriends apartment. They both had discussed marriage and kids, but had ultimately agreed that for the time being they were better off without any.
After his death, things had been too hectic for her to take notice of the startling changes to her body, it wasn't until a month after she had moved back to Portland that she discovered her pregnancy. By then it was too late for an abortion so she had debated with adoption, but then her son was born and his tiny, fragile soul was placed in her tired arms and she couldn't just abandon him.
Things were fine for the first couple weeks. Her mother came down and helped with the baby, her family supported her, her job gave her paid leave despite still being new to the press. Things were finally calming down in her life; then she found an old picture of Joe and she knew she had to go back.
Her mother protested her, family expressed their disapproval, but in the end she came. Staying down at her sons sleeping face, watching tiny eyebrows and little button nose scrunch up as he dreamed, his caramel eyes flickering under his little eyelids, and hearing the soft snore that occasionally escaped his mouth. She knew she had made the right choice.
"Ladies and gentlemen we have now docked at JFK airport. Air Delta welcomes you to New York City, you may now began to exit the aircraft, once again we'd like to extend our thanks for flying with Delta Airlines, enjoy your stay in the big apple."
Tightening her grip on her son, Angela shuffled forward out into the aisle. Reaching upward she opened the small carryon shelf and grabbed Liam's diaper bad and her knapsack full of hastily packed clothes before exiting the plane.
Angela quickly moved through the the airport, stopping briefly at the baggage claim to pick Liam's carseat and the nearest rental car station. Loading up the car and strapping her son in, she quickly got behind the wheel and raced off away from the airport.
Angela drove around in blind circles for about an hour not really knowing what directions he wanted to go in. Although she had come down to see Joe's family, the Reagans, as was the entire point of the trip to introduce her son and the nephew, cousin, grandson, etc to them. She didn't want to head straight to their family home just yet.
She didn't really have anywhere else to go though. All her friends who lived in the area that she could stay with temporarily, she cut ties with afterJoe's death. Any hotel that was semi decent would be pretty booked and all out rooms leaving her with either sleeping in a crappie motel or the rental car, but like he'll she was picking either of those options.
Looking back into therear view, Angela smiled as she watched Liam slowly began to awaken. His small caramel eyes fluttered open, as little eyelashes blinked rapidly to clear the sleep from his eyes. A small pudgy fist reached up and rubbed at his left eye as his mouth opened and he let out a tired yawn.
Now fully aware, his little head twisted this way and that surveying his new surroundings before he noticed his mother's eyes looking back at him. Grinning a wide toothless grin, he began to coo and drool as he waved his arms wildly trying to capture his mother's attention.
Angela laughed and waved at him in the mirror before focusing her eyes back on the road just in time to notice a woman jumping out into the street. The steering wheel twisted and the car swerved as a result. Tires screeched painfully against the asphalt before giving in and lifting from the ground.
The car flipped over on it's front. Liam's carseat jerked as did Angela who banged her head against the steering and blacked out. The sound of Liam's constant screaming jolted her awake moments later. Blinking rapidly she wondered for a brief moment why the world was upside down and spinning before shaking the fuzz out of her head and focusing g on the situation.
Clearing her throat she tried to croutons for help, only to fail as her voice came out barely above a whisper. Taking a deep, ragged breath she managed to successfully call out and alert some nearby tenants in an apartment, who turned on their lights and began to curiously stick their heads out their windows.
Sighing inrelief Angela turned around to check on Liam, who was still screaming, only to gasp in shock as an unknown woman reached in through the broken window and pulled her son out of his car seat.
As she began to get back up and walk away from the car, Liam still in hand, Angela cried out for her to stop.
"Hey! What are you doing! That's my son, Let go of my son!"
The woman ignored her and continued down the street, turning down an alley and disappearing from sight. Angela screamed and tried to follow after her, attempting to pull herself out of the car, only to cry out in pain as a sharp pain flared throughout her legs.
Screaming out in frustration she banged her bloody fists up against the steering wheel and began to later she felt darkness overtake her as she succumbed to exhaustion.