Water Ch. 82 - Come Back

The relationship is new and they are still learning things about one another, but the one thing that was clear was that when they are about to separate, they act like they are on each others nerves.  Beth determined that they do that to hide the pain they really feel about the impending separation.  She decided she wasn't going back east with Jon.  She wanted to stay home and recuperate and get caught up on some work.  Maybe clean her house?  Jon pleaded and begged, but in the end, he sees it's the right thing.  She does need to heal and she'll probably do it better in her own house, in her own bed. 

"Do you have all your stuff?' she asks, as she's rummaging through her own things looking for her car keys.

Jon tells her, "Yeah, I think so.  I left my toothbrush and deodorant here, is that okay?" he laughs, "Or are you kicking me completely out?"

"Smartass, get your stuff, or you'll miss your flight." She's pushing him towards the door.  She has an hour to get him to the executive airport, on the edge of LAX. "Do you have any idea how long this few mile drive is going to take, come on."

He's laughing at her as she's pushing him, hobbling on one foot.  "Babe, I won't miss my plane, relax."  He continues to laugh.

"Yes you will, your flight leaves at 2:00, it's almost 1:00 now.  LAX is a bitch to get to this time of day." she tells him because she knows, she's driven there many times.

Stopping dead in his tracks, her turns around to look at her and says, "My plane won't go anywhere without me."  Then it hits Beth.  They both laugh, she feels a little silly forgetting that he had his own jet.  When he said his flight left at two, she assumed he had just booked a flight, commercial.  "Give me the keys, I'll drive there."  Beth hands him the keys, as she's still laughing at herself.

Jon is a seasoned driver and the traffic in LA was nothing for him.  He knew how to weave in and out of traffic and knowing that, didn't help Beth's stress level.  Many times she learned that the invisible brake on the passenger floor didn't work. 

Arriving at LAX, they had to park in executive parking and get escorted to Jon's plane.  He put his bag on board and helped Beth walk up the narrow staircase.  She was going to sit with Jon while the pilot takes care of the flight plan and all the things that pilots do, prior to take off.  There wasn't a need for a flight attendant on this trip.  Jon could take care if himself.

Jon sits next to Beth on the couch and says, "Okay, how are we going to do this?"

"What do you mean?"

"Who's calling who and when.  Who's flying out for visits?  How are we going to work this relationship?" He said that with every ounce of seriousness he had in his body. 

"Why don't we just play it by ear?  If we set times and limits, we'll only disappoint one another.  Our schedules are busy and what if we miss a phone call time?  It's better to call when we have time, and when we want to.  As for visits, we really need to play that by ear." Beth leans in and rests her head on his shoulder, not wanting to take it off. 

Jon admits, "This isn't going to be easy, this is going to drive me crazy."

"Focus, Jon.  Find something to keep yourself busy.  Dive into the arena football.  You love sports."

He puts his head on hers and tells her, "The nights are going to be tough for me babe."  And Beth knows what he means, she knows they will be hard for her too.

"We can do this.  It's not for very long.  I'll get caught up at work and get this god damn cast off and them I'll come out East.  We can take a long weekend and go somewhere with the kids, if they would want to go?'

It hits Jon, what she had just said.  He bolts upright and looks at her.  "'Do you realize what you just said?  You said that we'll see each other in 6 weeks.  Beth your cast come off in 6 weeks.  That's too long.  That doesn't work for me." he's feeling a little panic right now.  There is no way he can go that long without seeing her.  They needed to figure something out.

They were startled when Chris, the pilot stated over the intercom, "We're 7th in line Mr. Bon Jovi."

Jon knows that they have just a few minutes and the door needs to close so they can take off.  Beth stands up and looks down at Jon and says, "We'll figure it out.  I'm going to go.  Will you call me when you get home?" She starts to bend over to kiss hime, but she can see he's getting ready to stand.  He stands up and wraps his arms around her neck, holding her for dear life.

"I know we'll work it out, I know - I just dont want to go one day without you, muchless weeks." he whispers in her ear. She looks up at him, smiles and kisses him on the lips.

The last words he heard from her before the door closed were, 'until next time.'  She hangs out in the terminal and watches the plane that says BON JOVI on the side take the man of her dreams away from her.