Title. Going Home
Summary. She finds herself feeling both happy and numb at the sight, as if she is watching a movie instead of standing in the midst of the moment.
Spoilers. Possible spoilers for events taking place toward the end of 'Hotel Tango', though none of the moments talked about in or taking place during this oneshot actually happen during Flight 29 Down.
A/N. I'm not sure where this came from, or even if I like it, but it's been nagging at me for a while. I figured, now that it's on paper, that I might as well submit it; there must be someone out there who might enjoy reading it. Anyways, I'm not used to writing in present tense and it might be a bit confusing, but it's meant to tell a story in something along the line of snapshots.
Disclaimer. I do not own Flight 29 Down or any of the characters. I am not profiting from this in any way.
Home.
Even as she screams hysterically and tearfully laughs with the others, the sound of helicopters roaring overhead, Taylor finds herself unable to believe it.
She's ecstatic, of course she is, but how many times has she had this dream, only to wake up with her body feeling sore and cold and tired of everything? The lingering doubt that this isn't really happening scares her, and it's even scarier when she admits it to herself.
Taylor Hagan isn't supposed to be afraid of anything, is she?
The helicopter flies far more smoothly than their original plane, but Taylor can't stop her stomach from clenching every time it shifts through the air currents. When she doesn't have her eyes closed tightly, she sees that the others look just as nervous.
Someone whimpers, Melissa, maybe, and Taylor laughs suddenly, unexpectedly, at absurdity of the situation she's found herself in.
None of them, she knows, will be traveling anywhere for a long time after this.
There are no cameras and interviewers cluttering the airport when they finally arrive, and she is strangely glad of the fact. No one asks her how she is doing, although Lex does take her hand as they stare across the landing strip, but Taylor is also grateful for that. She knows she'll only snap in response, anyways.
Besides, she's fine, she assures herself. She's perfectly fine. They've only been isolated on an island for a month, completely cut off from the world as they cling to survival and get more and more frustrated with each other.
She walks stubbornly across the tarmac, shrugging away her wooziness as she straightens her back and squares her shoulders. Jackson gives her a sideways glance, almost as if he wonders exactly who she is trying to convince with her actions, but she waves it off and summons up a smile.
Why wouldn't she be okay?
It's eerie to stand inside a building after so long.
The sky has suddenly been replaced with a horribly white ceiling, and sunlight has turned into unnatural fluorescent lights. The floor, tile instead of dirt, squeaks under her shoes, and she winces at the noise. Everything is clean and smells like disinfectant, but the only thing it does is make her eyes sting and her nose itch.
There can't be more then a hundred people in the airport, but she has only been around the same seven kids for so long that the crowds unnerve her. Without thinking, Taylor shrinks back until she's walking with familiar faces. Shoulder to shoulder with Daley and Eric, behind Nathan and in front of Jory, she faces the crowds more confidently.
She trusts these people, she realizes, more than she ever would have expected, and she's suddenly glad that they're all going to the same place.
Someone cries out, an unfamiliar feminine voice, and it startles Taylor enough that she jumps and grabs at Abby. Her actions shift the girl off balance enough for both of them to trip into Melissa, pushing her into Daley and causing a miniature domino effect.
Everyone else has stopped by now, staring at them and then ahead as if they don't know what to do. A group of adults stare back, unmoving and unblinking, and there is a moment of heavy silence that is shattered only by someone's hoarsely breathed 'mom'.
The moment is broken when Ian stumbles forward, his new crutches sliding on the floor, and throws himself at the woman who had called them. The reaction that follows is so chaotic that Taylor finds it aptly suitable, and she stands there for a second to watch.
This is reality, after all, and reality never was a calm place.
She looks on as Daley embraces her father, Lex gestures by his mother's side, and Melissa throws herself at her parents and a girl who must be her sister. Eric is cautiously approaching his own family, his hat held in his hands, while Jackson is being smothered by his foster mother, a pretty little woman with auburn hair.
Taylor finds herself feeling both happy and numb at the sight, as if she is watching a movie instead of standing in the midst of the moment. For the span of a heartbeat, she forgets about her own father, and that this should also be hers.
Then, arms are around her and she is acutely aware that she is here; this is happening to her as well.
Her father is holding her as he hums softly into her dirty hair, the way he used to. He looks older than she remembers, but his eyes still sparkle as he asks her teasingly where she's been for all this time.
His words make tears flood her eyes, and they trickle down her cheeks until they tumble from her quivering chin. Taylor finds herself sobbing and speechless as she clutches her father's shirt. She knows that she is wrinkling it and soaking the fabric, but he doesn't seem to mind because he is still humming. She's missed him so much, and she mumbles the words into his chest.
He smiles in response, an 'I did, too, sweetheart' escaping his lips.
She knows at that moment, even as she struggles to control herself, that this is it. They're finally, truly going home.
A/N 2. If anyone spots any mistakes, feel free to point them out. I'll edit them as soon as I can. As always, constructive criticism is appreciated.