New Heights

by Quinn Anderson

  The overhead lights dimmed, and the seat belt sign turned on. James fastened his and then watched the last few stragglers scurry to their seats. Everyone who was getting on now was heading for the back, but it wasn’t until one of the flight attendants shut the plane door that James realized no one was going to claim the seat next to him.

  Holy shit. Luck might actually be on his side.

  Working around the clunky seat belt, he pried his phone out of his pocket. He’d exchanged numbers with Mika before getting on the plane. If he let Mika know the seat next to him was unoccupied, then Mika could snag it.

  The second he started to text, the same flight attendant from the coloring book incident appeared next to him.

  “Sir, please put all electronic devices on airplane mode.”

  “Oh, of course.” James smiled and pretended to hit a button. “Right away.”

  The flight attendant left, and at double speed, James shot off a text to Mika. As soon as it’d sent, he switched his phone to airplane mode for real and pocketed it. He’d have to pray Mika saw it before he turned his own phone off. Mika seemed like the sort to leave his on until the very last minute. James crossed his fingers anyway.

  When everyone had settled in, the flight attendants went through the safety instructions. James didn’t hear a word. He craned his head toward the back of the plane and searched faces. He made uncomfortable, unintentional eye contact with a dozen strangers before he had to admit defeat. From where he was sitting, he couldn’t see Mika.

  Damn that short, beautiful man.

  As they prepared for takeoff, he replayed the events of the past hour in his head, from the drunken bonding to the fight to the fantastic bathroom sex. Actually, James did his best not to think about that last one. Not in detail. He was still in public, after all.

  Strange as it might sound, the sex had done more to convince James that his feelings for Mika were real than all the long conversations they’d had. Chemistry like that didn’t come along every day. It certainly never had in James’s twenty-four years on this planet. When they were together, it felt right, and if Mika could inspire him to get out of his comfort zone, then maybe James had finally met his match.

  Now he just had to convince Mika. Easier said. James had done his damnedest to think of the perfect thing to say after they’d had sex, but he hadn’t gotten the chance. Even if he had, he’d never been the guy who said the right thing at the right time.

  As the final preparations for takeoff were made, James was uneasy for reasons that had nothing to do with his mild fear of flying. Mika’s reaction to James’s confession had shocked him. He’d expected Mika to freak out, or maybe to tell James to slow down. But he’d never suspected Mika wouldn’t believe him. How could Mika think that James would lie about something like that?

  Then again, you told him you stayed with David for months even though you weren’t in love with him. Is that so different from what he’s accusing you of now?

  Shit. It was amazing how James’s past relationship kept finding new and creative ways to screw him.

  That couldn’t be the only reason Mika was holding back, though. He wasn’t the sort of person to give up without a fight. When James thought back on their conversations, it occurred to him that Mika was always emphasizing how little time they’d spent together.

  Maybe the problem wasn’t that Mika didn’t believe James. Maybe he just didn’t feel the same way. Had he been trying to let James down gently all those times he’d reminded him that they were strangers?

  After what Mika had said about finally being serious about someone, James had dared to hope . . . but now he wasn’t so sure.

  What if this really was a one-time thing to him? He never once said anything about dating. All his talk of casual sex and no strings didn’t exactly scream romance-for-the-ages.

  The thought made James’s heart sink down into his stomach.

  The plane began to taxi down the runway. No one could leave their seats until they reached cruising altitude. If Mika hadn’t gotten James’s text, James could always go to him. But then, did he want to have this conversation on a tiny airplane, surrounded by people? He supposed it was that or spend the whole two-hour flight brooding.

  As the plane lifted into the air, James looked out the window. New York City was lit up like a chandelier, brighter than the stars. Would he think of Mika every time he heard a song about New York, or drove by an airport?

  Don’t give up. What you two have is real, and it’s worth pursuing. Use this time to come up with a plan.

  When the plane landed, James would get off first, since he was at the front. He could wait for Mika at the gate, and they could talk. Then again, they were going to arrive around midnight. James was exhausted, and he wouldn’t blame Mika if he didn’t want to have another deep conversation tonight.

  James could call him the next day, but somehow he got the feeling this was a now-or-never situation. Mika was looking for excuses to run. If James let him wriggle away, he’d risk losing the most promising relationship he’d had in . . . ever.

  There was one thing he knew for certain: Mika was wrong. This wasn’t James falling into old habits or needing to be in a relationship. Their time together might have been brief, but James had grown a lot. The old him would have been too timid to go after what he wanted, but now, he was ready to fight.

  When the plane landed, he’d find Mika. They’d talk. They’d get it all out in the open, and if Mika still didn’t want to be with him, fine. James could accept it then. But this was one relationship he wasn’t going to let fizzle out.

  The captain announced their altitude over the PA system, and the seat belt signs turned off. James perked up in his chair. He was so fired up, he was tempted to say screw it and find Mika now, crowded plane be damned. He was still debating with himself when someone approached his row and stopped.

  “Damn, you got a nice setup here.”

  James whipped his head around so fast, his neck popped. “Mika! You got my text after all.”

  “Text?” Mika tilted his head to the side, dark hair falling over his eyes. “What text?”

  “Right before the plane took off, I sent you one saying the seat next to me was free.”

  “Oh, whoops. I must’ve missed that.”

  James pursed his lips. “Then what are you doing up here?”

  “Honestly? I was going to kick whoever was sitting next to you out of their seat.”

  “What?” James let out a surprised bark of laughter. “How were you gonna do that?”

  “Dunno. Fake a seizure? Tell ’em we’re married, and I want to sit next to my husband? I briefly considered asking politely before I decided that was ridiculous. In short, I was going to wing it and hope the flight attendants didn’t notice.” Mika plopped into the seat next to James. “I know I said I wanted to be less rude to people, but I figured I could start tomorrow.”

  James laughed louder than he’d meant to. He clapped a hand over his mouth and looked around. Most of the people seated near them were sleeping or had headphones in. Nevertheless, he lowered his voice. “I’m so happy to see you. I was debating coming to you.”

  “Glad I could save you the trouble.” Mika turned in his seat to face him. “We should talk.”

  “Yeah.”

  Once again, they both fell silent.

  Mika blew his hair out of his eyes. “I don’t know where to begin.”

  “Me neither.”

  “All right. I’m just going to come out and say it—”

  Oh God. James braced himself for impact.

  “—I’m sorry for the way I acted earlier.”

  At that, James blinked. “You are? Wait, for which part? When you stormed off or when you said you didn’t believe me?”

  Mika tapped his chin. “Huh. I guess I have a lot to apologize for. Let’s go with both for now.”

  “I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have dumped my feelings on you so soon. Obviously, I freaked you out.”

&nbs
p; “You didn’t freak me out. I promise.”

  James looked at him askance. “Really? Because you told me you have trouble being serious, and then I immediately dumped all this emotional crap on you. I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to run for the hills.”

  “To be fair, I did run. Or at least, I tried to.” Mika rubbed the back of his head. “But not for the reason that you think. I wasn’t freaked out. I was the opposite of that. I was so ready to embrace this whole thing, and it scared me.”

  “I know how you feel.” James licked his dry lips. “Sorry again, though, for any part I had in freaking you out.”

  “Don’t apologize. Seriously. I’ve been thinking, and I have a theory about all this. It seems to me like we’ve both been our own worst enemies throughout this whole bizarre chain of events.”

  James nodded. “Why do you suppose that is?”

  “Because, as I said, this is bizarre.” Mika gestured at the darkened plane around them. “I mean, who meets someone at the airport? Who starts a prank war but then ends up talking for hours and working through issues they’ve been struggling with for years? Who has sex in the bath—”

  James shushed him. “Please don’t. I’ll die.”

  “All right.” Mika grinned. “Anyway, the point is, neither of us woke up this morning expecting to end up here, and yet we did. I’m still processing, and a big chunk of my brain is convinced I’m trapped in some kind of lewd dream. I’m sure you’re experiencing the same thing.”

  “No, actually.” Mika’s hand was on the armrest between them. Hesitantly, James put his on top of it. “It’s weird, but ever since I met you, I’ve had no trouble believing everything that’s happened. It all feels so right to me, so natural. Like it was fate, or something.”

  Mika looked like he was struggling not to laugh. “Damn, that was poetic.”

  “Jerk.”

  Turning his hand over, Mika twined their fingers together. “In all seriousness, I’m sorry for being so hot and cold this whole time. I had some things I needed to work through before I could get to this point. Insecurities, mostly. It’s always the loud-mouthed ones that have the most fragile egos, you know?”

  “I think so, but if you’d like to share, I’m all ears.”

  Mika shrugged. “When I accused you of rushing into this, I was talking to myself too. There was a second there where I wondered if I was pursuing you so hard because you were the first person who’d inspired me to change for the better. I thought I was desperate to finally be in a real relationship.”

  “Do you still think that?”

  “No. Well, maybe a little. I’m not going to pretend like I haven’t been searching for someone like you my whole life.” He looked over, and when their eyes met, James’s heart fluttered. “But I also think we’re two people who work really well together and just happened to meet under unusual circumstances. I also think we moved too fast and that we need to spend more time together. A lot more time, if I get my way.”

  James squeezed his hand. “I agree, and I understand completely about having to work through some things to get to this point. I had to resolve all my shit with David and my other relationship pitfalls. Thanks to you, I was able to do that. Or at least, I was able to get a decent start down that path.”

  “Good.” Mika leaned closer to him. “That leaves one more thing for us to discuss.”

  “What?”

  “I’m pretty sure I already know the answer to this, but I have to ask. You said you have real feelings for me, and I believe you, but that doesn’t mean we’re automatically going to live happily ever after. You’ve had nothing but long, committed relationships your whole life. I’ll understand if you want to go slow. Keep things casual between us.” He looked down. “Or hey, if you want this to be a one-time thing after all, that’s cool. We can try being friends.”

  James searched his face. “Do you mean that?”

  “Of course.” His voice wavered.

  “Are you asking me to define the relationship?”

  “No!” Mika frowned. “Maybe? That sounds so serious. I’m asking where we stand. I want to be with you, but I don’t want to rope you into another long relationship. You’ve had those all your life, and I want for this to be something different. Something special.”

  James had never seen Mika look so vulnerable. He stared at Mika, overcome by the raw emotion swirling within him. I’ll be lucky if I make it a week before I’m completely in love with him.

  In that moment, James decided to do one more bold thing that day. “Mika, when we get back home, will you go on a date with me?”

  Mika’s eyes lit up with both excitement and wariness. “You mean it? You don’t want to see what single life has to offer?”

  “Nah, being single has never appealed to me. I also don’t think commitment is what I need to avoid. I needed to keep the spark alive and to work on my relationships instead of letting them stagnate. With you, I doubt that’ll be a problem.”

  “Why? Because dating me is going to be such hard work?” Mika narrowed his eyes, but he was grinning.

  “No, because I’ve finally found my passion, and it’s all thanks to you.” James brushed a finger along Mika’s jaw. “Now we just need to make it off this plane. Suppose things will be different when we’re back home and we’re not stuck in a controlled environment together?”

  “God, I hope so.” Mika stretched his arms up as much as he could. “The way I see it, we already know how we are when we’re stressed and uncomfortable. It’s all uphill from here.”

  “You have an amazing attitude.”

  Mika moved closer, clearly heading for James’s mouth. James’s instinct was to lean away and insist they wait until they were in private, but at the last second, he thought, Fuck it, and closed his eyes. The kiss was brief but potent. It swept through James like warm water. It was comforting and enthralling at the same time.

  All too soon, Mika ended the kiss, a wide smile on his face. “So, when do you want to go on that date you mentioned?”

  “Uh, I dunno. I haven’t thought that far ahead.”

  “Oh wow, you really have grown.” Mika smirked. “Don’t change too much though. Believe it or not, I like you just the way you are, even if you are an overly cautious Goody Two-shoes.”

  James frowned. “Hey now, you’re not exactly my type either. If someone had told me yesterday that I was going to start falling for a guy who’s fluent in sarcasm, I would have—” He stopped short, horror creeping over him like a choking vine. “I didn’t mean— When I said ‘falling for,’ I—”

  Mika stared at him, eyes huge. After a second, he grabbed James’s face and kissed him with intent. This time, James didn’t hesitate at all.

  When Mika pulled away, he was smiling. “So much for taking things slow.”

  “Yeah, I get the feeling that’s going to be a struggle for us.” He shrugged. “When it’s right, it’s right.”

  They spent the rest of the plane ride talking and laughing. Two hours went by in a flash, and a little after midnight, they flew into Charleston, South Carolina.

  Getting off the plane was easy, since they were sitting up front. James couldn’t help but needle Mika about the importance of reserving good seats in advance, which earned him a lot of eye rolls and grumbling. He had to eat his words, however, when he still had to find baggage claim, whereas Mika had everything he needed in his carry-on.

  James had expected Mika to say goodbye at the gate. It was late, after all, and they were both dying to go home. But to his surprise, Mika waited with him while his bag came slowly down the conveyor.

  As soon as James had grabbed it, he turned to face Mika. “Well, this is it.”

  Mika smiled. “How are you getting home?”

  “I’m going to take a cab.” James shifted his weight from foot to foot. “I would have asked my sister to pick me up, but she doesn’t have a car.”

  “That’s a shame. I would have loved to meet her. Although, this does present an
attractive alternative.”

  “Huh?”

  “What are you doing tomorrow? Or rather, today?”

  “Um.” James looked up at the ceiling in thought. “Laundry, I think? Unpacking? Settling in?”

  “What if . . .” Mika paused, and his tongue appeared in the corner of his mouth. “What if we had our date tomorrow?”

  James’s heart rate doubled. He eyed Mika’s single bag. “Sure you don’t have unpacking of your own to do?

  “Very funny. But seriously, you want to?”

  “Hell yeah. When I first asked you, I wanted to plan something for tomorrow, but I figured after spending eight straight hours together, you’d be sick of me.”

  “That’s the thing. I’m not. I’m so not. I— Honestly, I want to ask you to come home with me. Is that totally off the rails?”

  James’s pulse went from fluttering to pounding. “You mean it?”

  “Yeah.” Mika frowned. “I’m really asking, though. Is this too much? I just . . . I don’t want this to end.”

  “I don’t either.” James smiled so hard his cheeks hurt. “Which is really weird, because I love my alone time. Like, I need it. But I suppose there’s always time for that later.”

  “Who needs space when there’s cuddling to be done?” Mika winked. “And a date to go on tomorrow. And morning sex. Let’s not forget about morning sex.”

  James blushed, but for once, he didn’t look around to see if anyone was nearby. Let them eavesdrop. He was too happy to care. “Definitely.” He went in for a kiss.

  Mika met him halfway, wrapping a hand around the back of James’s neck. After a heated minute, he pulled away. “Wanna get a cab together, then?”

  “You don’t have anyone coming to pick you up?”

  “Nah.” Mika started walking toward the glass doors leading out of the airport, but not before reaching out to take James’s hand and tangle their fingers together. “My buddy George was supposed to come get me, but he’s got a wife and a baby at home. I texted him saying don’t bother when I found out we weren’t even getting on the plane until way past his bedtime.”

  Together, they walked out of the airport to the pick-up and drop-off area. A sea of cars and yellow cabs circled lazily, waiting for the last few flights of the day.