⌗ 56; third person ✎ᝰ

"Good afternoon passengers. This is the pre-boarding announcement for flight 722 to Sydney. We are now inviting any passengers with children or are in need of special assistance, to begin boarding at this time."

Mara stands from her seat and wraps her hands around the push handles of Mason's wheelchair. "Ready to go, Babi?" Mason nods with haste.

"Please have your boarding passes and any relevant identification ready. Regular boarding will begin in approximately fifteen minutes time. Thank you for your patience. This is flight 722 en route to Sydney. Once again this is your pre boarding announcement, thank you."

Mason holds their boarding passes and their identification in hand. "We're actually going." Mason felt almost astounded. It hadn't hit her yet; that in several hours time, she'd be in the land where her heart lies; for the first time in what seems like forever, she'll see Riley Marsh.

Her heart pounds against its cage, threatening to escape. Mara furrows her brows. "Are you feeling ok?" Mason sits stiff in her wheelchair; an unreadable expression plastered on her face.

Mason took a deep breath. "I'm ok. Just a little nervous, that's all." She draws her head back and smiles when she feels Mara's lips against her very own. "Mm, that's better."

The latter knew how much time she had left. As wrong as it was, she couldn't help it. She couldn't stop herself from indulging herself in what would soon slip away from her grasp. May it be their hundredth kiss or their very last,

all she knew was how she had to savour it.

For it'll end quicker than a daydream. The kiss lingers for a moment more before they both pull away, and her fantasy comes to a mere close.

Mason Kang is not hers to keep. It drills itself into the deepest parts of her brain. And all at once, her heart continues rip and tear at itself.

The feeling similar to shards of glass against your bones; delving deep within and leaving wounds and scars that inevitably bleed; unsure of when it'll end and become clean.

"Ma'am, your boarding passes?" The tall passenger assistant smiles broadly as Mason hands over their passes. "Excellent. And your passports?" It takes her no less than a minute to scan and validate their tickets. "Enjoy your flight, ladies. Have a good one."

The two young ladies smile and say their thanks before walking towards the jetway. Mason could feel her stomach churn. This'll be her first time on a plane. Her anxiety was unparalleled.

"You've been on a plane before, right?" Mason stares at the end of the jetway. "It's okay?"

Mara presses a kiss on top of Mason's head, "I have. You have nothing to worry about, Babi. I'm right here with you." She smiled.

They find themselves in their assigned seats in no less than ten minutes; their carry on stored away in the overhead storage bins; their hearts beating in sync with their every breath.

There's a feeling of uncertainty that towers over the young women; both lacking self confidence. While en route to the same destination, one will find comfort while the other lies in a bed of thorns. Mara can't help but think of the reality that awaits them in that faraway land.

Fate had not been kind to her; she knew that full well. It was inevitable, that with time, she'd lose the girl she'd come to love more than life itself. The girl that without a doubt, has changed her life entirely, and in more ways than one. She feels homesick; not for a place, but for a person. A person, who in turn, would never view her as a home she could run to when she felt anything at all; may it be happy or sad.

Mason felt a heaviness drop onto her shoulders. Her hands rest on either side of her, clutching tight onto the armrests. She would leave everything to the hands of fate; hoping and praying that she would find the answers she had been searching for. To restore her peace in this crazy world. To finally free herself of this torment. This had been going on for far too long. She could no longer taken the pain nor guilt. It was time to let the truth come out,

for the good or bad.

Her life has revolved around one person; since their first encounter. Mason had never felt so desperate for a person. She has yearned persistently. In the last two hundred and forty three days, her heart remains the very same as the day she walked out. Regret had built up around her like a brick wall. Many things were left unsaid, and now, she gets to say them,

out loud. There's no turning back now. It's all happening. In 8 hours, and no less, she'll find herself in a vast land that in the last two hundred and forty three days, has been home to the one person she so terribly misses.

And while she sits in a pool of both excitement and nervousness, the young woman beside her feels nothing but a gut wrenching sadness.

Mara will lose the one person she's loved more than life itself. The last two hundred and forty three days have been some that has ultimately changed the trajectory of her life forever. In two hundred and forty three days, her heart had broken and mended itself more times than she could ever imagine; more times than she could count with her fingers. Her heart had so desperately fixed itself in hopes of healing; in hopes of taking what she so desperately wanted. But there is no use. In eight hours and no less, her heart will break for what seems like the millionth time. Only this time, she remains unsure, unsure if her heart could ever heal.

Her love will return to whom they truly belong. And that itself is a living hell she will live in for the rest of her life. And yet, her heart finds itself in the hand of the girl beside her.

"My heart feels heavy." Mason gulped.

"Mine too," Mara admitted. "My heart feels heavy too. Like it'll break without warning."

The words slip past her tongue like a gust of wind. She feels guilt wash over her like a bed of water. There are certain things we shouldn't admit, and for good reason. To live guilt free.

But it's far too late.

They've already broken each other's hearts.