“Ladiezzzz and gen’lmen. We seem to have a bit of a problem. We’re going to…”

The plane dropped. Nancy felt airborne. The woman in front of her was airborne. People screamed. Nancy screamed, “Holy shit!”

She and Don took one look at each other and linked arms. “Hang on to me, ” she cried.

Don, his eyes wide with panic, cried, “I will!”

“We’re going to make an emergency landing mumble mumble…”

Don looked at her with mournful eyes. “I cheated on my fiancé.”

“What?”

“Twice in six months. I…I have to tell someone in case we…in case we die.”

“Die, ” Nancy shouted. “Shut up. Shut the fuck up!”

“I had to tell someone!”

“Why? Why did you cheat on her?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then, ” Nancy snarled, “You shouldn’t get married.” Despite the insanity of the situation, Nancy was pleased to be thinking about something other than the airplane, even if forced her to talk to the idiot next to her.

“I know, ” Don moaned. “If we make this…”

The plane dropped again. The airborne feeling hit them again. Oxygen masks fell from the overhead compartments. More screaming. The old man in the window seat, his face pale, trembled as he tried over and over to get the mask on his face. Don pulled the mask over the old man’s head, pulled on his own mask and looked at Nancy, his expression a combination of fear and sadness.

“Passengers! This is the Captain! Please! Get in crash position. We’re going to…”

Loud noises. Upside down. Right side up. The world turned gray. Everything seemed to moving in slow motion. Blue skies appeared above. Billowing smoke and flames ahead rushed towards her. The right side of the plane disappeared.

The sound of screeching metal assaulted Nancy’s ears as the plane skidded to a stop, and then there was nothing but silence. As Nancy and Don sat stunned and unmoving in their seats, the smell of burning fuel filtered into their nostrils. The old man next to Don slumped forward in his seat.

As Nancy looked up at the billows of smoke drifting in the clear blue sky, a sense of calm washed over her.