"And in between the two is my card."
"What?"
"It's teams. Five of them," he said, pointing at the five of swords. "Me," he said pointing at the page of wands, "though it's been a long time since I got that card. And you," he said, pointing to the ace of cups, "the one some people would like to drink."
I felt myself blush at the mention of my particularly appetizing smell.
"Maybe it just means the Cullens," I offered. "Take out one couple and you have five."
"I don't think so. It feels like trouble. Plus, better to be cautious. If it's the Cullens, won't you recognize them? If it isn't, our only chance is to be far enough away to run without them seeing us. I mean, you said they move so fast you can't even see them? That they can lift cars with one hand? No, we better see them first."
"How are we going to do that? They have better eyes and ears and everything."
"Well, I guess we'll either have to have a really good plan, or be really lucky. Or both would be even better."
He wanted luck? There was no way we were going to get out of this alive. It was some of the best luck I'd had in ages that the plane hadn't already been sucked into some inexplicable black hole or been destroyed by some other fiery means.
"Oh cheer up. Maybe it'll be sunny when we land. Then we just have to run outside."
We'd finally come up with a plan, after spending fifteen minutes going over what we thought we could do to shake a vampiric tail. I'd decided to try and sleep till our flight got to the ground, but really just shut my eyes and rested. I heard a ding from the panel above me.
"Yes sir?" I heard whispered from the aisle.
"Could I have a couple more packs of peanuts?" Matt asked over my supposedly sleeping form.
"Certainly." I heard footsteps retreating to the back of the plane, then returning, before I felt something pass over me.
A few minutes later, the captain announced that we were landing at O'Hare international, where the local temperature was eighteen degrees Fahrenheit. I shuddered. This was supposed to be the windy city, too, and that was without the wind chill. I saw Matt doing the same thing next to me and was glad that I wasn't the only one.
"Ok, remember the plan?" asked Matt. I'd follow the crowd to the luggage carousel, swipe the first large, unattended suitcase I could grab, and head for the most crowded door on that level. He would go find some sort of transportation and meet me at the curb in fifteen minutes from when we got separated. Stay in public, if you see any vampires, pray they are the Cullens or run for sunlight.
"Yeah," I answered as people began to finally move ahead of us.
"Then let's do this thing," Matt shouted enthusiastically. Heads turned to look at us. I pretend like I don't know him, but I think people can tell I'm trying to melt into the ground. We finally get out of the plane, dodging around people quickly in the walkway that connects the plane and the terminal. We stay in the crowd, trying to keep out of view as we ride the airport's monorail to some where that we can make our break for it.
"Okay, this stop will work," says Matt, pushing me towards the exit. Once out I see arrows pointing one way directing to a garage, and another way to check in, baggage claim, and the rest of the known airport world.
"So we split here?"
"Here, when it says 11:49, I should be pulling up to the curb," Matt said, handing me his cell phone.
I turn to go, as he starts walking quickly towards a set of double doors carry the luggage we had put in the overhead bins.
"Hey Matt! Than.."
"I know, now hurry up!" Stupid psychics. I rush through a raised hall way, that I can see a street below, connecting the monorail and the main part of the airport. I guess that street is where I'll meet Matt. It seems like it has a pretty steady stream of people loading and unloading cars. No one could really do anything there. Plus, what are the odds that I'll run into any one I know in a city I've never even been to?
The signs point out that the baggage claim is two levels down, which is good, because it means I don't have to drag anything down a bunch of steps, but bad because it means a bunch of steps. I manage to not slip on the stairs, which is even more impressive considering that the melting snow and ice from people's shoes on the steps.
I watch one of the carousels that already has luggage on it, remembering Matt's advice to wait for one to come back around to the beginning before taking it to minimize the chance that its owner was present. I feel like such a delinquent, getting tips on how to swipe luggage. My father would be appalled. At 11:46, I finally take a blue rolling suit case big enough to fit me inside it. A kindly man there with his family helped me lift it off the conveyor belt.
"Thank you," I say, embarrassed to need help in my criminal enterprises.
"No problem, that things as big as you are."
"Well, you gotta pack for this weather, right?" I shout as I head for the exit. I glance down at the phone as I head through the revolving door to the outside world. I get hit by a blast of cold, good lord it's below freezing and I don't even have a sweat shirt on. I can last three minutes for Edward. I glance down at the phone.
11:47. I can last two minute for Edward. I start to head towards the beginning of the car line figuring that I can jump into a hopefully well heated car all the quicker if I don't mind moving towards the area more exposed to the elements.
"Bella Swan! What are you doing shivering out here in the cold?" I hear a musical voice call from behind me.
Author's note: Airports and Cities may have been reformatted to fit the story. Get over it. And if anyone honestly thinks that it is Edward talking to her at the end, disqualify yourself from any contests that I ever propose to win any secret outtakes or any other prize I come up with. As for a new contest, who do you want it to be? Persuade me, and that will get you your own outtake, possibly your own story. If you just guess the person I think it is without persuading me to do anything new, I'll send you the next chapter at the same time I send it to my beta. Who, by the way, is Books and Bojangles. Holds up applause sign Yay for her!