Long

He should have set off from the house earlier, convinced himself to wait. Now, he’ll have an extra long wait here at the airport, which is going to do nothing for his nerves. The noise, the people, the constant announcements; it’s a wall of sound. Bile keeps rising in his throat for missing his own announcement, for not finding his gate, for his carry on luggage being too big. And that’s not even letting himself think about the actual flight.

“Don’t worry,” says the guy buckling himself in th...