Short chapter! But the next one will be longer I promise! Next one also might be in Padme's POV (What do you guys think about that?)

Happy Reading!

Chapter 4

"Flight course change acknowledge, depending to 25,000 feet, and turning ten degrees South." Anakin read through the readouts and relayed the information to Obi-Wan who focused on following the commands of the flight controller. With less than an hour left on the flight, Seattle seemed to have a massive thunderstorm on the way and the airport had reported that delays were already in place on most flights to the city and outbound traffic was limited while the only inbound flights allowed to land were the ones already in the air. Anakin let out a sigh as he made a minor adjustment to the flaps, "Looks like we're in for a bumpy landing," He said.

A jolt of turbulence rocked the plane, "Yes, and it looks like it's starting now," Obi-Wan said, flipping the switch so he could address the passengers and cabin crew. "Ladies and gentlemen," He started, "As we near our destination it looks like we're going to be hitting a few patches of turbulence as the weather over the city is currently storming. We will do our best to make the remainder of the flight a comfortable one for you. We have turned on the 'fasten seatbelt' sign and would greatly appreciate if you would stay in your seats for the remainder of the flight." Just as he finished addressing the passengers and disengaged the link to the cabin, another powerful wave of turbulence shook the plane as a barrage of rain fell upon them. "Blast," Obi-Wan hissed as he pulled back on the yoke.

Anakin engaged his controls and gave a tug on his yoke to assist in keeping the plane steady but to little avail. Reaching out to flight control, he made the request for smoother air but due to the high number of requests, they were denied. It wouldn't do much good anyway. They were going to be starting their final approach soon and would have to pass through it sooner or later. Smoothing out the flight as much as they could, Anakin and Obi-Wan fought through each wave of turbulence they hit leveling out when they could, riding through it when they had to, Anakin tried to keep the plane steady with the foot pedals at Obi-Wan's orders. Rain pelted down against the windshield limiting their visibility of the approaching airport. Anakin could just barely make out the lights on the Space Needle but that very narrow visibility would have to be enough.

As the airport just barely came into view as they passed through the lower level of the clouds a strong gust hit the right wing and they veered. Obi-Wan gave the order to level out but another gust picked up below them and gave them a lift they did not need. "Lowering slats," Anakin said as he angled the wing of the plane to reduce drag. The plane started to level out as Obi-Wan requested another approach. The new angle from the turbulence set them up for an angled landing and while it could be landed, Obi-Wan was not the kind of man to take unnecessary risks. The rain made for slippery conditions and the wind posed a risk to throw them further off their approach.

Their request was approved. And after ascending several hundred feet and making a pass at the airport to circle back around, they lined the plane back up with enough leeway to account for the possibility of another gust of air hitting them. As gently as they could manage in the weather, they tilted the nose of the plane up as they neared the ground and with a hard landing, the back wheels hit. All flaps and slats were fully extended as the plane raced down the runway until it came to a near-stop at the end of the runway. "Another happy landing," Obi-Wan said as he smoothed his hair back. Flight control guided them off the runway and towards the terminal and once their plane was at a complete stop at the gate, they ran through the post-flight checklist to make sure everything was shut down properly.

Obi-Wan opened the cockpit door when they were finished, his jacket hung over his arm and his bag sitting on the jump seat as they waited for all the passengers to get off. Anakin leaned against the door beside him, his jacket was hanging on the extended handle of his roller bag as he wheeled it back and forth.

"Looks like all outbound flights are canceled now," Obi-Wan said as he scrolled through his phone. "This is not what I needed tonight," He groaned as he opened his texting app.

"Satine?" Anakin asked.

"I told her I'd be home tomorrow morning," He said. "I was supposed to fly out of Seattle and into Sacramento."

"She'll understand."

Obi-Wan scoffed, "I doubt it. She's been asking me to leave the company," He muttered.

"What?"

He gave a shrug, "It wouldn't be that bad. There are regional jets I could fly. Won't nearly make as much and the locations aren't as interesting. But I'd be there." A small smile formed on the older man's lips. "I… I think perhaps it might be time for me to consider that."

Anakin raised a surprised brow at him, "I… didn't expect that," He said. "I never thought you of all people…"

He gave a shrug, "Satine is worth it," He said. "If she never wanted me to fly again… I would probably do it. For her."

A sly smile tugged at Anakin's lips, "So… does that mean you're going to marry her?"

Despite his beard, Anakin could clearly see the blush forming on the man's face, "W-we'll see." He said simply, his eyes averting back out to the cabin. A smirk of his own formed on his lips, "And what about your flight attendant?" He asked.

Anakin blanched, his roller bag bumping into his leg from being caught off guard. Have a nice flight! The words rang in his head once again and he was tempted to slam his head into the door. His prolonged silence only made Obi-Wan laugh and instead of dignifying a response, he kept quiet after all, she was close enough that she could probably hear them if he said anything. He watched as she stood by the door, waving passengers off. Her back was too him but he could easily hear the tiredness in her voice. Most likely she was thinking about the same thing he was. With so many flights canceled, flight crews would now have to scramble to adjust their schedules and find a hotel to stay in for the night. And for her, she probably had to also move around family stuff as well.

As the last passenger stepped off the entire demeanor of the flight crew shifted dramatically. Shoulders slumped and plastered smiles disappeared as exhaustion and frustration about the cancelations set in. Obi-Wan squeezed passed him the moment he could, politely thanking the entire crew as he stepped off and made his way up the gangway, his phone pressed against his ear. One by one the rest of the crew started to step off and Anakin followed suit. Unlike the rest of the crew, his mind wasn't completely focused on the weather. Have a nice flight! He wanted to fix that. He had to fix that. The less than two minutes it would take to get them into the terminal was enough for him to figure out he should just say hello… but he didn't get any farther than that.

The loud bustle of the terminal drew closer and he could clearly see the doors that would send them on their individual ways. He had to act fast! She had barely taken a step into the airport when he closed the distance between them, "Hi!" He said. Padme stopped and turned around to face him, side-stepping so she wasn't standing directly in the path of the door. Anakin smiled as he pulled over beside her. "Hi…" He said again, silently kicking himself for not saying something else. Stupid!

"Hi," She said.

Anakin raised his hand to scratch at the back of his neck, "Uh, you probably don't remember me," He started, "But we met a few months ago, on the flight to Arizona… you were taking your son to an airshow."

Her eyes widened in recognition. Finally! "You're that flyboy that sat next to him, aren't you?"

He smiled and bowed his head, "Guilty," He said. "Uh, I don't think we were properly introduced back then."

Padme returned his smile, "Either way, four months is a long time."

He laughed as he held out his hand to her, "I'm Anakin. Anakin Skywalker."

"Padme Naberrie," She returned. "It's nice to meet you."

"Same," He said. Awkwardly they shook hands a little longer than what would be polite until they seemed to realize it at the same time and tried to laugh it off as they let go. Anakin scratched the back of his neck again as she rubbed at her forearm. "So…" He started.

"So…" She repeated, neither really certain where to go from here.

"Uh, so, looks like we're stuck here," He said. She nodded and he continued, "Have you ever stayed in Seattle before?"

She gave a shrug, "Once or twice," She said. "Never really strayed too far from the airport though."

"Well, there's a small restaurant not too far from here. It's also really close to a hotel. Would you… maybe like to join me?" He asked. He hoped she would say yes.

Padme smiled at him, "That… That sounds nice. I'd like that."

The joy and the relief he felt made him want to jump and shout yes! But he steeled himself and cleared his throat, and motioned for them to start on the way to the exit.