Chapter 3 – Flight

I sat down in the large, heavily padded first class chair, alone. Once seated my anxiety returned to paralyse me, the air hostesses walked casually up and down the isles past the living ice sculpture. I was hollow inside, the worry had gnawed at my insides until I was an empty shell, only skin left. And in truth, my mind really was absent. It was in the future, a few hours into the future in New York to be exact. What would I do if Alice didn't catch the plane?

I sat brooding and worrying throughout the four hour flight, my nerves gradually stretching tighter and tighter. I was working myself into a state, getting stiller and stiller, I knew it, but I didn't know how to stop, I had nothing to distract me. Those four hours were unbearable. I honestly don't know how I managed to live through them. I thought I might spontaneously implode from the millions of stretched toot tight wires pulling my skin and muscles in a thousand different directions.

Although it definitely didn't feel like it, time did pass on the flight. The flight did eventually touch down in New York. Contrary to what my brain was telling me the plane had not, in fact, been suspended, unmoving, in mid air. We had been travelling. I was just that much closer to seeing Edward again.

I knew it was a bad idea to build my hopes up like that, but it was the only way I could function. I knew that by hoping, thinking about be reunited with Edward would only make it harder when he left, at least if he got killed in Italy I could die too. I just couldn't live in a world where he didn't exist, it would literally be hell on earth for me, I would go to the Volturi and take whatever the afterlife had throw at me.

With me in slightly better spirits and relaxed just enough to be able to move, I got off the plane. I walked with the rest of the passengers down to the luggage pick-up site. It took me a few moments to realise I had none, so I walked into the main airport to find terminal three.

The airport was crowded, but I made my way swiftly towards the check-in for terminal three to get a boarding pass. I walked up to the desk where a prim blonde, who was very conscious of her looks, sat typing into a computer.

"Hello, there's a flight booked to Italy from here under the name Cullen?" I asked.

"yes, I believe its already been paid for?"

"Yes" she handed me my ticket and wished me a pleasant journey.

There were many things this journey was going to be, I could make a list, but pleasant wasn't going to be on that list.

I made my way through security, through the metal detectors and was just about to hand my ticket over to the security guard when my phone vibrated, I checked the caller ID and saw that it was Alice.

Panic clawed its way though the pit of my stomach and up to my chest, she wouldn't call me if there wasn't an emergency, right? I walked swiftly to a quiet corner where I was free to fall to pieces in privacy.

"Hello?" I answered, my voice full of trepidation.

"You're going to have to sneak past him Bella, I've still got your passport."

"oh" I sighed in relief, "how do I do that?"

"You're going to have to be really fast, once you start you cant stop or pause for anything, just keep moving. Bella, just run, get where you're going to run past all the people fixed into your mind so you don't have to think about it then just run." she explained rapidly.

"Alice, does that mean you wont be here in time to catch the plane?" my spirits sank.

"Hang on a minute..." the phone went silent and I could picture her blank face, but it was incomplete – I had only human memories to work from, and they were from so long ago... Alice's voice startled me, "I will be there to catch the flight, but I wont have enough time to get your passport sorted out, you need to do this Bella,oh, and by the way, hold your breath as you go past, the ginger one on the end has cut herself."

"OK" I closed the phone.

I took a deep breath while seeing where I would run. I would run around the edge of the group of Chinese tourists, and weave the other side of the three girls with the matching outfits, through all the gaps in the crowd holding my breath while I went past the ginger woman who was about to hand her stuff over to the security guard. I stopped my breath on the way out and ran.

And I mean really ran.

I had ran before, I had run nine hours straight through the night, I had run fast. But never this fast. I had never been really trying for speed. But I tried now. Edwards life possibly depended on me making this flight, I wasn't about to let him down now.

I felt the wind of my passage as it pushed my hair and clothes back. I heard the destruction it caused as the papers flew out of the ginger woman's hand.

I slowed down to human velocity once I was round the corner. There were a few people there, but none of the noticed my sudden appearance and I walked onto the plane without a hitch.

Once again I sat down and became ice; cold, still and silent.

I stared blindly out of the window next to me. It was days, yet at the same time only seconds, later that a small hand was placed on my arm. It wasn't the burning touch of a human, it was the now-warm touch of a vampire. I knew immediately who it must be.

I turned with a half smile on my face to see Alice standing there. I never really noticed with Rosalie, I never paid much attention to her human or vampire. But I noticed with Alice. I could really see her for the first time. The relief turned into joy and I leapt forward to hug her with the most enthusiasm I'd had for anything since before my birthday.

"Er... Hi Bella" she said leaning away from my hug.

I released her realising that I was just as strong as her now and I'd just given her a bear-hug.

"Oops, sorry" if I was human I would've blushed, there I go again with the if I was human, I really had to get over the fact that I was a vampire now.

We sat down then and the plane started moving, reminding me of why I was getting on the plane. Worry, anxiety, frustration, fear, pain. Alice saw all these emotions flit across my face and put her arm around my shoulders.

"its the fastest way to Italy," she reminded me quietly.

I nodded in reply, a few tiny, sharp movements of my neck. It was all that I could manage. I became immobile again, all the emotions churning around inside me, pulling at my muscles, making it impossible to move.

"We're not that far behind Edward, only a few hours. Bella we might not make it, we could be too late, and even if we aren't, it will still be very dangerous, if there was anyway to do this without endangering you, I would, but you're the only one who has a chance of stopping him." Alice leaned back against her seat, "Emmett and jasper wanted to come as well when they heard, but I told them no, we cant sneak up on him and if he heard us he'd act that much faster, and then they'll fight. I cant lose jasper that way, Bella." Alice looked at me pleadingly, begging me to understand, I got it and I couldn't blame her, I would've done the same.

Her face went blank after a few moments when she received no response from me other than the understanding on my face.