Disclaimer: I own nothing.
A/N: Yeah, so I was listening to James Otto and one of his songs, with the same title, inspired this oneshot. Great song...actually, he has a lot of great songs and I might end up doing oneshots for a couple of the other songs at some point. Anyway, I tried something a little different with this one and put it in the perspective of a character I created, Rebecca Smithson. This, as you'll notice, takes place in an airport at the baggage claim and Rebecca is observing a couple of men she noticed on her flight and comparing them with each other. One of them being Ryan. You'll notice that Ryan and this other guy are pretty different and Rebecca comes to a conclusion about both of them by the time this ends. Cute Ryelsi moment near the end. :) Hope you like it. Reviews always appreciated!
Rebecca Smithson had been a stewardess for the past eight years. An avid people watcher, she often found herself analyzing the people she served and took care of during a flight. She had come across just about every type of person one could imagine. She had always considered herself to be pretty observant, especially when it came to people. She had long since come to the conclusion that you could learn a lot about someone just by watching them. Today, however, she had flown as a regular passenger and was returning home after a much needed vacation. Her habit of watching the people around her was still very much present and as she waited for her luggage in the baggage claim, she couldn't help but observe the people she had been on the plane with.
As she surveyed the crowd, she caught a glimpse of the man that had been sitting across the aisle from her. He had jet black hair – perfectly styled - and dark eyes that seemed to have a sort of cold arrogance about them. He was dressed in a suit that was no doubt ridiculously expensive. Rebecca frowned as she remembered that the first thing he had done when he got on the plane was take off his wedding ring before slipping it into his pocket. When the stewardess came by with the beverage cart, he had looked up at her with a look that was just short of condescending and ordered a stiff drink. There had been a beautiful blonde sitting in the seat next to him and he had glanced over at her as she had ordered her drink. The blonde had flashed him a flirtatious smile, which he had responded to with a wink. It wasn't long before he took out a business card and scribbled something on the back of it before handing it to her.
Rebecca shook her head in disgust as she watched the blonde walk over to him now and the two of them resumed their flirting. Rebecca had long since decided that you could learn a lot about a man when a woman; in this case his wife; wasn't watching. He probably assumed that whatever his wife didn't know wouldn't hurt her. She was overcome by a wave of sympathy for his wife; imagining that every time she turned her back, that he stole a kiss from one woman or another. In the time Rebecca had observed him, it had become very obvious what kind of man he really was. She couldn't help marveling at how men seemed to realize they could get away with murder when they weren't being watched by their wives or girlfriends. Some of them seemed to take that as a license to do whatever they wanted, just as long as their wives or girlfriends didn't find out. She didn't know this man's wife personally, but based on what she had just witnessed she decided that he definitely did not deserve her.
Rebecca turned away from the sleazy businessman and the blonde woman, unable to watch any longer. Just then she caught a glimpse of another man that had been on the flight. She had spotted this one on her way to use the bathroom. He had been sitting three rows behind the businessman. This one had blond hair and friendly blue eyes. His eyes were enough to make Rebecca have a good sense about him – after all, eyes were the window to the soul and all that. The plane had been pretty empty and oddly quiet, so Rebecca had been able to hear his exchange with the stewardess as he had ordered his drink. He had asked for a soda over alcohol and even made a point to say both please and thank you, which came as a pleasant surprise. In Rebecca's experience, those words had become a rarity these days. The thing that had caught her attention about him, however, was that as she had passed him to get to the bathroom she had noticed that he was also married. Only, unlike the sleazy businessman, he kept his wedding ring on as a promise for the whole world to see. Both of the bathrooms had been occupied when Rebecca had headed towards them, so for a while she had just stood there waiting. She had focused her attention on the blond man, drawn to him for some reason. There had been a beautiful girl sitting next to him as well and she had been coming on to him pretty strongly. He had politely, but firmly, informed her that he wasn't interested. Not easily deterred, she had kept on trying to flirt with him. He had finally held up his left hand and pointed to his wedding ring. Rebecca had nearly cheered. There was no doubt in her mind that this man would make it home faithfully. Like any good man would.
Now, as she looked back and forth between the businessman and the blond man, Rebecca found herself marveling at the differences between them. The blond man's wife wasn't here either and it would have been easy for him to respond to the advances of another woman. How would his wife know? The fact of the matter was that the wedding ring he wore apparently meant something to him. He could resist the temptation of the woman in the seat beside him because he loved his wife. Rebecca imagined that he saved any of all of his kisses for her and her alone. She would have no way of nothing that for certain, obviously, but she had a feeling. After all, she reminded herself, you could see what kind of man a man was when his woman wasn't watching.
"Eric!" Rebecca turned her head as she spotted a pretty woman with beautiful auburn colored hair making her way through the crowd. She felt her heart sink as she realized that she was walking towards the dark haired businessman. "Oh I missed you!" The businessman, apparently named Eric, somehow managed to slip his wedding ring back on his finger where it belonged before the woman reached him.
"Sweetheart!" Rebecca heard him exclaim. He smiled at the woman, his wife no doubt, and Rebecca couldn't help but notice how fake it seemed to be. Unable to resist watching the scene, she managed to position herself in a way that wouldn't make it obvious that she was paying attention. He held his arms open as his wife nearly jumped into them, obviously thrilled to be reunited with her husband. Rebecca felt another wave of sorrow crash over her. Meanwhile, the blonde woman that he had been flirting with on the plane grabbed hold of her own bag and started to walk out, pausing to look over her shoulder at Eric. Rebecca felt sorrow quickly turn to repulsion as she watched Eric wink flirtatiously at her over his wife's shoulder. The blonde woman responded with a smirk and continued on her way. At the same time, Eric and his wife pulled apart and he leaned in to give her a brief peck on the lips. "So how are the kids?" Eric asked, grabbing a hold of his own suitcase. Rebecca felt her heart sink even lower with that statement. She watched as he put his arm around his wife as the two of them headed out of the baggage area. The woman had no idea what kind of man she was married to.
As she was shaking her head in disgust – again – she heard a squeal coming from the other direction. She turned her head and spotted a petite woman with beautiful brown curls making her way towards the baggage area. She was obviously giddy with excitement and was practically bouncing as she walked. "Ryan!" she exclaimed happily. The complete joy in the woman's voice, combined with the picture she made, was enough to make a smile flash across Rebecca's own face. Rebecca looked over to try and see who it was that this woman was so happy to see. Her heart lifted as she realized that the only other person that was in that part of the baggage claim was the polite blond man from Rebecca's flight. The one who had both kept his wedding ring on and ignored the advances being made on him by the woman he was sitting next too. Rebecca assumed that the woman with the curls was his wife. Sure enough, as soon as he spotted the woman with the curls, his face lit up with a smile. And not a fake smile like the one the other man had pasted on his face either. This smile was completely genuine.
Rebecca watched as he walked towards the woman with the curls. "Kelsi," he said softly, the love for the curly haired woman evident by the tender way he spoke her name. He walked until he was a couple of feet away from the woman with the curls and then stopped, setting down his suitcase. The woman, apparently named Kelsi, stopped as well. Rebecca felt her breath catch in her throat as she observed the couple. It was like watching a scene from a movie. For a few moments, the couple simply looked at each other as if there was no one else around. Rebecca chuckled to herself as the woman, Kelsi, let out another squeal before literally flinging herself into her husband's arms.
"Gosh, I missed you!" Rebecca heard her say. She smiled as she took in the way the man, Ryan, wrapped his arms around his wife and held her close.
"Not as much as I missed you, I bet," he said in response. The couple stayed like that for a long moment. It was at that point where Rebecca noticed the woman he had been sitting next to on the plane walk by. Just like the blonde woman, she paused to look over her shoulder at him. Unlike the businessman, however, this one completely ignored her. Or actually, as Rebecca guessed was the case, it was more that this man only had eyes for his wife. Rebecca doubted that he had even registered the other woman's presence. She watched as the woman's eyes fell and she continued on her way, looking more than a little disappointed. Meanwhile, Ryan and his wife pulled apart slightly so they could look at each other. He gently took her face in his hands as he kissed her, eventually sliding them back into her hair. No quick pecks here. Rebecca averted her gaze, feeling slightly ashamed for observing this achingly tender and private moment. She waited for several seconds and then glanced back over, noting that the couple was just now pulling apart and smiling at each other. "Next time I have to go on a business trip, you're coming with me."
"Deal," Kelsi agreed. "As long as it doesn't happen a few months from now," she added, glancing down at her stomach. A stomach that Rebecca just noticed was rounded.
"Well of course," Ryan nodded. He kissed the tips of his fingers before pressing his hand to his wife's belly. "Hey there, little one," he said softly. "Daddy's home." Kelsi's smile softened.
"Thank goodness for that. It doesn't feel much like home when you're not here," she said quietly.
"I love you baby," he said tenderly, leaning in to give her a soft kiss.
"I love you too," she beamed at him. "Welcome home." He reached down to pick up his suitcase with one hand and held out his free hand towards her. She linked her hand with his and Rebecca watched as the two of them walked away.
Yes, Rebecca thought with a nod, you really could tell a lot about people just by watching them. There was little hope for Eric and his wife, especially after what Rebecca had witnessed. It would only be a matter of time before his wife figured out what kind of man she was married to. As for Kelsi and Ryan...well Rebecca suspected that Kelsi already knew what kind of a man she was married to. A good one.
Because you see what kind of man a man is when a woman's not watching.