As the flight continued, I found myself stealing glances at the man beside me, curiosity battling with caution. He had an air of authority, the kind that comes naturally and doesn’t need to be announced. The plane encountered slight turbulence, the kind that jolts you back to reality. His hand instinctively reached for the armrest, brushing against mine. “Sorry,” he apologized, his smile disarming. “Turbulence always catches me off guard.” I nodded, my own heart racing from more than just the bumps in the air. Conversation lulled, and I turned to the window, the clouds a sprawling blanket beneath us. My mind drifted to the life I had left behind, each memory a weight I was trying to shed. A sudden thought occurred—what if this man beside me was part of that world? The idea was absurd, yet the envelope’s red ‘Confidential’ still burned in my mind. The drinks cart clattered by again, and he declined a second round, opting instead to pull out a tablet, the screen lighting up with spreadsheets and documents. His focus was intense, yet his presence seemed to fill the space between us, a quiet power that I couldn’t quite ignore.
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