Free Coffee and Cockpits by Jade Hart

I’d been on the job two days, and was about to live through an emergency landing. Hopefully live through. Please don’t let this end in disaster! Remember my promise. I will fight for the life I want.
    Pulling courage around me like a cape, I said, “Will do, Captain. I look forward to seeing you on the ground.”
    “Me too, Nina. Me too,” Captain Anderson replied.
    Liam said, “Make sure your harness is on extra tight. Do you hear me?” His tone was bossy and strict, but I knew it was only from fear. I liked bossy and strict Liam, it warmed me with knowledge he’d keep me safe.
    His protectiveness helped chase away my remaining fears. “I’ll cinch it as tight as it will go. Liam?”
    “Yes?”
    “Stay safe up there. I know you’ll bring us to the airport in one piece.” And I promise to be nicer to you when it’s all over .
    He chuckled. “That’s the plan. Right, I gotta go.”
    The line went dead, and I hurried up the aisle, motioning for Joslyn and Samantha to join me at the front.
    Passengers grabbed our hands as we walked by. “Is everything okay? Do we need to do anything? Will we land safely?”
    I gave my best professional smile. “There’s nothing to be afraid of. You’re in the best of hands with Captain Anderson. We’ll be there soon.”
    Once at the front, I hustled Jos and Sam into the galley away from prying eyes. One look at my expression and Joslyn’s bottom lip wobbled. “We’re not going to make it? Are we?”
    Sam gulped, waiting for my answer. How did I become the leader?
    Trying to keep the seriousness of our situation light-hearted, I rolled my eyes. “Now is not the time for dramatics, Jos. Of course we’re gonna make it. Your step-brother is driving. He’ll make sure we do.” I sucked in a breath and added, “We just don’t have landing gear. That’s all.” Did that sound blasé enough? I hoped so as it helped disguise my own panic.
    Samantha flinched. “We—we don’t have landing gear?”
    “The electronics are out. The wheels won’t go down, so we’ll be landing on the undercarriage of the plane. Captain Anderson and Liam sound confident, but just in case, they’ve arranged for ambulances and fire trucks to be our welcoming committee.” I straightened. “We have to stay calm and collected for the passengers’ sake, and make sure you tighten your harnesses as tight as they’ll go. Any questions? We need to buckle up. We’re almost there.”
    Joslyn sniffed and I ignored the twisting in my belly. Holding a pilot’s license didn’t make this any easier. In fact, it made it worse as I knew how bad it could be. Any squall of wind or quiver of turbulence, and the pilots might not be strong enough to stay in the clouds. The huge tonnage of aircraft could sink from the heights of atmosphere to the depths of the ocean. 
    “I’m glad you’re keeping a straight head, Nina. I signed up for fun and travel. I’m not so good in stressful situations,” Sam admitted. She patted me on the back and headed to her seat.
    Joslyn gave me a wry look. “If we survive this, we’re so going to drink tonight.”
    I laughed. The thought of a drink after flying with death filled me with hope.
    Joslyn and I sat in our chairs and strapped ourselves in. I pulled the harness across my chest tighter than any corset. 
    The plane’s nose dipped, and we picked up speed as we descended into the Pacific Islands. The only thing visible from the portal window were fluffy cotton-candy clouds and blue horizon. In that moment, I wished we could float up here forever. Not worry about gravity or landing with no tires. There would be no smooth transition from sky to earth, not on crunching metal.
    My breath caught as a judder bar of turbulence jostled us. Passengers flinched, crying out.
    We inched lower and lower to the sparkling teal ocean. I had no doubt the pilots would be drenched in sweat, muscles bulging, fighting to keep the jumbo-beast weightless. Every inch we dropped, every