Flat-Out Love (21 page)

Matthew Watkins
“
One’s life should never be so boring that one resorts to making up quotes and falsely attributing them to famous people.”–Winston Churchill

Finn Is God
SAY TAKE FACEBOOK “HOW TASTE YR BRANEZ” QUIZ. SEND BRANEZ 2 ME I TASTE. PS I ARE NOT A ZOMBIES
.

Julie Seagle
If you can’t stop thinking about someone’s update, that’s called “status cling
.”

Julie had the car for the evening for her date with Seth. Miraculously she managed to find a parking spot, but it took four tries for her to cram the car into the small space between a huge pickup truck and a beat-up van. It was freezing out tonight, and she sat in the car for a moment before opening the door. She just needed another few minutes.

This was supposed to be a big night with Seth. She knew that. She should be flying up to his place. Maybe she was nervous?

She grabbed her phone and checked her mail. There was a message from Dana:
Have a hot night with Seth! And close the deal already! LOL!
Julie laughed.

And one message from Finn.

Julie–

Did Celeste’s package get there? I’m holding a lovely handwritten note that I forgot to put in the envelope. I’m a dummy. Tell her I’m sorry, but that I hope she likes her gift
.

Hope you’re having a good night
.

–Finn

Finn–

I’ll tell her. She loved the gift. Very sweet of you. Not the same as having you here, but it’ll tide her over for a bit. Gotta run. I’ll see if you’re on chat later. Although I’m a tired wreck today from being up so late last night. You’re evil
.

–Julie

She could have just said that she was going to her boyfriend’s house. There was no reason not to. But she still hadn’t mentioned Seth, and it seemed silly to make a dramatic announcement about it.

Julie got out of the car and walked to the front door of Seth’s building, her phone still in her hand. She stood for a moment before ringing the buzzer. Had it sounded stupid to ask Finn if he would be online later? Totally pathetic? It’s not as if she was chasing after him or anything, but what if it looked that way? Here she was, heading up to another guy’s apartment for a big-deal evening, so she wasn’t going to be online later anyway. Why had she even said that?

From now on, maybe she should wait sixty seconds before she sent messages to Finn.

Seth buzzed her in, and she paused in the lobby. Julie had always taken the stairs, of course, and never the elevator, but tonight she was feeling brave. Daring. She could do this. No dramatic fainting or having a panic attack. No more being controlled by this stupid phobia. She would ride the elevator like a completely normal human being. She pressed the elevator button—immediately opening the doors—stepped inside, and hit the button for his floor. She leaned back against the metal wall and closed her eyes, ignoring the handrail that dug into her back. There. There was nothing to be afraid of. Her vision hadn’t blurred, the cabin wasn’t spinning, and she wasn’t going to fall. In fact, the elevator issue felt like the least of her concerns right now.

It didn’t really matter what Finn thought of her anyway, right? Who cared if he knew she wanted to find him online tonight? Which she wasn’t going to do anyway because she would be busy. Finn was just some boy she would probably never meet anyway. Some boy she e-mailed and chatted with.
Maybe he’d be around tonight, maybe he wouldn’t. It didn’t matter because
she
wouldn’t be free.
She
had important things to take care of. With Seth. Her boyfriend.

Suddenly the elevator slammed to a hard stop, causing Julie to stumble forward. She caught the rail with her hand and froze. The doors didn’t open. She knew she hadn’t been in the elevator long enough to have reached Seth’s floor. Perhaps something would kick into gear in a minute and the elevator would magically finish its trip up? Julie swore and hit every button on the panel but one. The last thing she felt like doing was pressing that nasty red button that would sound the alarm. This was what she got for being a daredevil. She called Seth.

“Where are you? Didn’t I just buzz you in?” he asked.

“Yes, I
am
in the building,” she agreed. “In the elevator.”

“Well, hurry up and get in here. I’ve got dinner ready, a little wine poured, candles lit. The whole bit.”

“That sounds really nice.”

“I’ll be honest. I’m trying to seduce you, Ms. Seagle.”

Julie looked down at the dirty floor, focusing her attention on one particular smudge. “That might be tricky.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because I’m stuck in your elevator. And it seems to be getting smaller by the minute in here.”

“I’ll be right there.”

Beads of sweat were starting to accumulate on her hairline, and her stomach was noticeably unhappy. The evil metal box with its fluorescent lighting was decidedly uncomfortable, and the thought that she was suspended in the air—by what was probably an ancient cable—was not exactly soothing. It was like being dangled over a cliff or frozen at the top of a Ferris wheel. How did the Ferris wheel even get its name? Had there been a
Mr. Ferris who had sadistically designed such a disgusting, terrifying ride? Matt would probably know. If she ever got out of here, she could ask him. If she didn’t faint and smack her head on the wall and give herself brain damage, she could ask him.

“Julie? Julie?” Seth pounded on the top of the elevator doors.

“Don’t hit the doors, for God’s sake! You’ll probably plummet me to the basement!” Julie barely wanted to move in this death trap, and there was her boyfriend trying to snap what was probably the last frayed metal thread holding her up.

“You’re stuck between the third and fourth floor. This happens once in a while. I just called the building supervisor, who is calling the fire department.”

“Great. That sounds fun.” Julie carefully slumped to the floor and tucked her knees into her chest.

“You OK in there?”

“No. I’m not OK. I’m freaking out! I don’t want to be in here. Really. Not at all. I’m going to die any minute, I can just tell.”

“Um, do you want to do some deep-breathing exercises? Why don’t you visualize floating things? Feathers and clouds and bubbles. That might help.”

“No, I don’t want to do any frickin’ deep-breathing exercises! I want the goddamn fire department to get me out.”

“Julie, listen to me. I’ll count to five, and you inhale through your nose along with me. Then exhale for five counts through your mouth. Ready? One, two—”

Shut. Up
. Seth was no help whatsoever. Fine, he had called the fire department, but otherwise he was not helping her to relax one bit. Her phone sounded, and she realized that it was still in her hand, her fingers now white from gripping it so tightly.

Julie–

I should be around later, yes. Where you off to tonight
?

–Finn

Oh, thank God. Finn! She checked Facebook’s chat from her phone, and he was signed on.

Julie Seagle
Am flipping stuck in an elevator. Alone. Miserable. Help is on the way supposedly, but I am not enjoying this experience. Starting to seriously panic. Sweating, shakes, visions of brutal death.

Finn Is God
What??? Oh, no! Do not panic. Have you forgotten that I am a superhero?

Julie Seagle
I had forgotten! Feel totally safe now. OK, you fly under the elevator and lift me up to safety. Ready? Go!

Finn Is God
Unfortunately my flying powers were deactivated because I abused my superhero status. Apologies. I have other powers, though, that will get you through this.

Julie Seagle
Give it your best shot. Convince me that I’m not a million feet in the air.

“Julie?” Seth called. “You still breathing with me? And… inhale!”

“Yup!” she called out.

“Good! You keep breathing, and I will distract you. Um…I’ll sing!” There was silence for a moment. “I don’t know what to sing. OK, how about this?” Seth launched into an impressively loud and off-key rendition of “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” “I don’t know why I chose that. It’s just what came to mind.”

“It’s lovely. Keep going,” Julie hollered.

Finn Is God
You can’t pretend you are not up high, because you are.

Julie Seagle
These are delightful powers you have. Thank you so much. I feel a million times better.

Finn Is God
Accept that you’re up high and embrace it. Take control. It’s like when I go skydiving. I don’t actually love heights. It scares the hell out of me to be in that plane, looking down at the ground. But I jump through that fear and turn it into euphoria.

Julie Seagle
I would never in a million years go skydiving.

Finn Is God
What if I took you?

Julie Seagle
I’d still be jumping out of a plane alone, just like I’m alone in this stupid elevator.

“Swiiiiiing looooow,” Seth’s singing echoed through the building. “Oh! The fire department is here. Hold on. Let me see what they say.”

Finn Is God
You wouldn’t be alone. I’d take you tandem, so you’d be strapped to me. We’d jump together.

Julie Seagle
How would that work?

Finn Is God
You’d be in front of me, your back pressed into my chest.

Julie Seagle
That part doesn’t sound so awful.

Crap
. Did she just write that? There was no
undo
or
delete
button. How totally embarrassing.

Finn Is God
No. It doesn’t sound so awful, does it?

Julie Seagle
So then tell me more.

Finn Is God
OK. Pretend we’re going right now. Ready?

Julie Seagle
Ready.

Finn Is God
We’re in the plane, and it’s loud and cold. You see duct tape over parts of the interior of the plane and wonder if jumping is the worst idea you’ve ever had, but I tell you you’ll be fine. We both have on the full skydiving suits, helmets, goggles, chutes. The suit is tight, and it gives you the illusion of being safe, secure. You’re full of mixed emotions. Pride, anxiety, exuberance, terror.

Julie Seagle
Nausea?

Finn Is God
That’s not an emotion! But yes, nausea.

“Miss? Boston Fire Department here. We’ll have you out in about thirty minutes. You hangin’ in there?” a gruff voice asked her.

“Take your time,” Julie called out as she continued staring at the small screen in her hands.

“Julie, did you hear that?” Seth asked. “Only thirty minutes. I know it sounds like forever, but it’ll go by fast. Is my singing helping? It should at least be making you laugh.”

“Knock it off with the singing!” one of the firemen ordered. “Miss, even though there will be a bit of banging going on, you’re perfectly safe. We’ll get you out just fine.”

“No rush,” Julie muttered.

Julie Seagle
Then what?

Finn Is God
Your mind is racing. Did you remember to turn off the oven at home? Your car needs an oil change. You’re out of shampoo. Why do washing machines eat socks? Do they taste good? Should
you
try eating socks? You wonder if you should back out, if this was a mistake. You didn’t tell anyone that you were jumping today, and now what if you die? You worry that you’ll forget what to do, that you won’t remember when to pull the chute. I show you the altimeter. The plane is only halfway up to where we need to be, and it already feels so high. But you’re not in any danger.

A loud thud sounded, and the elevator shook. Then metallic noises echoed throughout the chamber. Julie squeezed her eyes shut and couldn’t stop the whimpering sound she made.

Julie Seagle
Finn, I’m scared. The elevator is shaking.

Finn Is God
I know you are, but I’ve got you. You’re not in the elevator, remember? You’re with me. I stand you up and try to push your body away from mine, reminding you that you are tightly strapped to me and that I won’t let anything happen. It’s my job to control our jump and my job to pull the chute if you don’t. You’re safe. Tell me that you trust me.

Julie Seagle
I trust you.

Finn Is God
We’re high enough now, and one of the instructors opens the door, sending a powerful rush of air into the cabin. Your heart nearly stops when I start to walk you to the edge. As much as you’re terrified, you’re also starting to feel the rush, the thrill you get from being on the brink.

The noise from above continued, but Julie barely noticed. The only thing she could pay attention to, the only thing she cared about right now, was what Finn was writing her.

Finn Is God
We’re at 15,000 feet now, and when you look down at the ground, you immediately try to step away from the door. You want to bail on this. I back you up, and we let someone else jump first. I put my arms around your waist and pull you in, holding you, letting you know I’m with you. I tell you that you can do this, that you’re strong enough and brave enough. I tell you that you can do anything. So you nod and agree to jump.