You're gonna be kind of mad at me for this. Lol It was inspired by a song I listened to by Alexz Johnson called "Steal My Love." I'll make it up though in a little Ichabbie chat post thing. :)

Abbie plopped beside a passenger she wasn't paying attention to. All she wanted to do was head to this police conference in Virginia and go back to Sleepy Hollow. She only went because Corbin wouldn't leave her alone about it.

"You could use the extra training, kid. Besides, you need to get out. Meet new people," he said.

She had rolled her eyes at him. She handled her break up with Danny just fine. A relationship was not in her plans, especially after that. Coming on this conference trip was not in her plans either. She sighed. Corbin didn't know what he was talking about. She rubbed her face, buckled up.

Crane stared out the window. He heard someone sit down beside him, but he couldn't pay them any mind. The clouds seemed like a good place to escape, along with a trip to Virginia.

"Get your mind off of Katrina. Go rant at a lecture. Find a nice girl," his friend Abraham said.

Crane had nodded and watched Abraham book his flight. He figured he needed a vacation from Sleepy Hollow after the tumultuous relationship he had with her. He wasn't looking for love at the moment though. However, he did hope one day he'd find the right woman again. Today wasn't it.

A flight attendant rolled a food cart beside Abbie. He offered packs of peanuts, Sour Patch Kids, and caramel corn. Other options were bottled water, juice boxes, and soda cans.

"I'll take the popcorn and a water," Abbie said.

He handed them to her.

"And you, sir? Sir?"

Abbie tapped his shoulder.

"Hm?" he said while he turned his head to her.

She pointed to the cart. "What do you want?"

"Oh, my apologies for keeping you waiting, sir." He skimmed the items. "I would like the candy and a water, please."

The flight attendant gave him his snack and left.

"Excuse me, Miss, for reaching across you to receive my refreshments."

Abbie opened her pack. "It's alright."

"I'm Ichabod Crane. You are?"

She ate her popcorn and tried to ignore the fact that she found his British accent and politeness charming. He was handsome, too, when she caught a look at him. He had a brown beard with short brown hair. Nice blue eyes. Tall. He had at least a foot over her.

"Abigail Mills. You can call me Abbie." She quickly glanced at him, then back into her bag.

"Pleased to meet you." He opened his own snack.

"You, too."

She was pretty. Markless brown skin. Her full lips and light brown eyes had the potential to undo him if he had stared at her too long. He liked her quick talk and that she wasn't his height.

He began to chew. "Are you traveling to Virginia as well?"

She chuckled. "Unfortunately."

"I suppose you did not want to?"

He asked alot of questions.

She looked at him. "No. You?"

He sighed. "I needed to get away for a bit."

She wondered why.

"That tends to happen. You from Sleepy Hollow, too?"

"Sadly, it does. And I am," he said.

She nodded.

"If I may ask, why don't you want to go to Virginia?"

"I'm not in the mood to. I just got out of a shitty relationship. Not up for any traveling or being around people."

They munched and drank while they spoke.

"I know very well."

"What's your story?" she said.

He shook his head, sighed.

"Not right now?"

He nodded. "What about yourself?"

She glanced at the seat in front of her. "How's your candy?"

He understood she didn't want to talk about her failed romantic encounters either.

"Sour and fruity. Since we're on the topic, it's kind of like a relationship."

He must've been through it. She opened her water. "How so?"

"It may be a challenge getting to know a person. You have to figure out how they work, their likes and dislikes, and all of who they are really. You want to become a part of their soul. That takes time and dedication. It's the sour. When you finally become a part of it, it is sweet, intimate. Well worth it. Sometimes a relationship only remains sour though."

She almost choked. Who spoke like that? It was endearing. She wasn't much of a sap, but if he kept talking like that, she'd soon turn into one. Maybe her knees would get soggy or her breath would fall short if he did it enough. Did he want to be a part of someone's soul, but couldn't or didn't? He sounded sad.

"Whatever happened to you, I'm sorry."

He seemed like a sweet heart. Who would want to hurt him?

He smiled at her. "Thank you, Miss Mills."

"I told you Abbie is fine."

"It doesn't seem proper."

She laughed. "Really?"

He was so old fashioned. She didn't mind though.

"Really, Miss Mills."

He thought she was very forward, but he like that about her.

She shook her head. "Okay, Crane. Can I call you that?"

He quite liked it.

"Yes."

"Cool." She paused. "I think relationship can be like this popcorn. Sweet. Incredible. At the same time not easy to chew through or swallow. Relationships may pop well at first, but they can burn. Little annoying hooves, the hurt, get stuck in corners of your teeth. In other words, your mind. You carry them with you until you remove them. Sometimes you don't or it seems impossible to; they just stay there, irritating and maddening until you can't focus on anything else."

She finished her popcorn. Crane wondered what man broke her heart. What hurt is she carrying? Has it caused this much anger and distraction in her life? From how she's spoken to him, she doesn't seem to let people in so easily. She tells you what you need to know about her, not what she willingly wants you to know.

"I'm sorry about your relationship, too, Abbie."

She smiled at him as well. "Thanks, Crane."

He nodded and stared out his window again. She gazed out of it, too. They both thought about the other's previous relationship, hoping they found what they really wanted in their next one.

"I wasn't enough for her. She thought I wasn't enough," Crane said.

He played with his empty wrapper. Katrina did a number on him. She knocked his self-esteem, his confidence. Either he didn't cook right, said the wrong thing, wore the worst clothes, had an awful job, was too nice. He couldn't satisfy her and thought he was pitiful. He's been slowly letting her insults go. He'd have to remind himself he were none of those things Katrina said he was.

Abbie shook her head, put her hand on his shoulder. "She's wrong about you."

She didn't know about his life; she didn't need to know everything, but he didn't appear to be worthless. And how could he be too nice? Weren't people supposed to be nice?

"I've been telling myself that. We only dated for a year, but there are still scars."

"They'll go away soon."

He nodded. "Soon."

He knew in time they would. They looked out the window again.

"He used me to get to his dream job. I helped him there. People have done the same for me, but I wouldn't forget them. That wouldn't be their only purpose in my life. I'd keep them around," she said, glancing out the window as his eyes rested on her.

Danny wanted to go to New York City, where the big dogs were. She understood wanting more and chasing your dreams. She wouldn't hold him back from that. He hurt her though. She helped him learn about small-town crimes and who was who and why they mattered in what case. They got close. She trained him well. He eventually knew what he needed to tackle a big city. Then he left. He broke all ties with her. A year's worth. No calls, no texts, no letters, no visits. Nothing. She only built his career. For someone to take advantage of her time and advice really pissed her off. She's been reluctant to help people since then, even her sister.

Crane's hand briefly landed on hers. "He never deserved you to begin with, Miss Mills."

He didn't like the idea of anyone using her for their gain. She appeared to be the type of her person to put her heart into everything because she cares. Whoever did that should be ashamed of themselves.

"You will heal," he said.

She nodded. "Yeah."

She hoped he was right.

They faced the window again.

They fell asleep studying the shapes of the clouds. Abbie woke up with her head on his shoulder and yawned. Crane's head leaned against the window.

"Ladies and gentlemen, our flight will land in approximately three minutes," the pilot said.

Abbie shook him. He woke up.

"We're almost there," she said.

"Oh, very well." He sat up, stretched as much as he could. "Did you enjoy your flight?"

"I did." She smiled. "You?"

Maybe she needed this after all. Maybe meeting new people wasn't so bad. She thought she'd be a bit okay now, live with what happened with her and Danny, slowly move on from it.

"More than I thought."

He liked speaking with Miss Mills. She definitely took his mind off Katrina for the most part. He could handle his pain a little easier. Manage it, so it wouldn't engulf him so much. Let go of some of it.

"Passengers, our flight is landing in two minutes," said the pilot.

Abbie sighed. "It's come to an end."

"Unfortunately."

They got quiet and fully looked at each other. He took in her light brown eyes and full lips. She memorized his blue ones and brown beard. She put her hand on his cheek. She was glad she met him. It disappointed her that they couldn't talk longer.

"Thank you, Ichabod."

He kissed the back of her hand. "Thank you, Abigail."

He wouldn't forget their meeting. Her company would be missed.

The pilot counted down the landing. As numbers passed, they found themselves coming closer together. When passengers shouted zero, their lips touched. They kissed slow. Eventually, they picked up the pace. Tongues flounced, moans bounced in ears, fingers twined in hair. Their kisses told them what they wanted the other to have after any bad relationship or problem: hope.

After they retrieved their luggage from the baggage claim, they stood by the airport exit. A couple, who grabbed hands and resembled them, walked past. The girl held a bag of caramel corn while the guy had a pack of Sour Patch Kids. Abbie and Crane smiled at them and then at each other. Crane kissed her forehead; Abbie played with his coat lapel, reached up to kiss his lips once more before they parted ways. Even if they never saw the other again, caramel corn and Sour Patch Kids would always remind them to hope and would leave a sting of what they could've potentially had with each other.