Letting My Brother's Best Friend Take My V-Card

OFFICER JESS

The air in the security office was stale, thick with an indifferent kind of tension that only made everything worse. Laura and I sat across from a stone-

faced airport officer, his uniform too crisp, his gaze a mix of disinterest and irritation as he glanced between us and the stack of paperwork in front of him. He was chewing a pen cap like it was his lunch. I watched the sweat bead down his forehead just like it pooled around He flipped another page without looking up, a slow, almost mocking turn of his wrist. "I don't know what you're expecting here, ladies," he said, voice cold and impatient. "We're dealing with hundreds of flights. You'll have to be patient."

I grit my teeth, trying not to let my frustration show. Laura's hand was clenched around mine, her grip tight enough to cut off the blood supply to my fingers. "We were told they'd land

safely," I said, fighting to keep my voice steady. "But there's been no word from them, no confirmation. We need to know where they diverted."

The officer raised a brow, barely stifling an eye- roll as he glanced at the manager beside us, then back to his papers, scratching his pen lazily across the page as if humoring a couple of hysterical tourists. "If there was a diversion, we'd have heard by now," he drawled, clearly disinterested. "And if not... they're probably weather like this."

14:02

285 Mouchers

"Minor delay?" Laura's voice trembled with a desperate edge, her face paling as she looked at the storm footage still playing on a screen over his shoulder. "Look at what the storm did outside-this wasn't minor. They were flying right into it!"

all the energy of someone forced to listen to a tedious story for the tenth time. "Miss,

relax until we have more official information. The

voice from breaking.

clearly annoyed now. "Like I said, we're busy. But..." He sighed again, picking up

last place he wanted to be. His expression didn't change as

a few long seconds, he just shook his head, setting the paper down without

barely a whisper. "Did you...did you see

the stack back with a bored swipe of his hand. "If it were on that list, I'd have said so." He gave a dismissive shrug, shifting his attention back to his computer as if we were no longer there. "Must've gotten rerouted somewhere else."

OFFICER

1288 Voucheril

was like a slap to the face, the reality settling over me like a stone in my stomach. He wasn't even

be?" I asked, barely holding it together. I could feel Laura beside me, her breathing

got flights landing up and down the coast. These things. happen. There are also a lot of islands with landing strips, and some of the pilots are

clawing at me. But before I could snap,

us one last irritated

mine, her hand ice cold. She whispered, voice breaking,