Chapter Text
Nick stretches his arms out and feels the hot sun beating down on his face. Sunny days are rare, and so much better than working out in the rain. Checking his watch, he’s got two and a half more hours of work to go.
It’s busy. Busy is good. Busy makes the days go faster. The ground vehicle pulls up, and he and the other men get to work loading up the aeroplane. He and Timothy make quick work of it, managing together to move some of the oversized pieces, passing them to the crew busy playing real life Tetris in the baggage hold. There’s a shortage of boarding bridges so the travellers for this flight will need to board from the tarmac.
The flight crew come out first in their slick uniforms. Nick sees so many different groups of people everyday that it’s hard to remember who he might know and who he has actually met, and it doesn’t help when they all wear uniforms.
“Right, that’s the last one,” Timothy says. “I think we’ve got time for a quick coffee break.”
“Sounds good.” Nick sets down the last purple suitcase, and the men head to the staff room.
In the bathroom, Nick washes his face to try and scrub off the sweat and the lingering smell of jet fuel. Taking a closer look at himself, he frowns. That one line on his forehead is definitely getting deeper, but overall, he’s not looking too bad for his mid-to-late-thirties. With a career in rugby cut short by a torn ACL, Nick is actually much happier living a somewhat normal life. He combs his damp fingers through his blonde hair, pushing it all back to the side slightly.
Happier, even if he does miss those wild days of big parties, photo shoots, training day in and day out, and all the cushy perks of the job. But being a baggage handler is fine. The pay is surprisingly okay, and at least he doesn’t have to be holed up in an office all day.
“Nelson?”
Timothy’s voice pulls him out of his little introspective moment, and Nick pats his face dry quickly. “Coming! Could you make me an instant coffee please?”
“Sure thing.”
Timothy is a little older than Nick; broad, burly, with olive skin and dark facial hair. He’s probably as close to a brother as Nick could ever hope for, excluding his blood-related brother David who is a complete idiot. David works in finance, and seems to look down his nose at his manual labourer younger brother.
Dickhead.
Nick and Timothy join some of the other guys and enjoy their afternoon coffee break. Sandra from management has brought in some homemade cookies as a thank you for Nick dog-sitting for her a couple of weekends ago.
Of course Nick was happy to dog-sit. What the hell else was he going to do? His best friends, Tara and Darcy, have just gotten married and moved down south. He sees Sai and Otis sometimes, but they’re busy with wives and girlfriends and, shit, Otis has a kid now. He has a kid. On purpose.
It’s shocking to think nowadays a pregnancy announcement doesn't just mean a weak pullout game.
Christian is still around, now married to his childhood sweetheart Imogen. But Nick doesn’t see either of them as often as he feels he should.
“And what’s all this?” Timothy glances across the tearoom at a group of people in airline uniforms. “Are they lost?”
“No,” Sandra interrupts. “Maintenance work on the airline staff lounges, they’re sharing our space until the plumbing can get sorted out.”
“Great,” Timothy sighs. He and Nick share a knowing look.
There’s nothing wrong with being a pilot. Sure, it’s just like being the driver of a very expensive bus. That flies.
In practice it’s the same. They take off. They land. They fly the same routes day in and day out. In fact, they don’t actually really fly, right? Everyone knows planes fly themselves nowadays. Or something.
“Hope it won’t be for long,” Jackson, one of the other men in Nick’s squad, says quietly. “They all look so…” He struggles to find the word.
“Tidy?” Nick offers.
“Stuck up?” Timothy smirks.
“Otherworldly,” Jackson says.
“Please, people idolise them too much.” Nick sits down with his cup of coffee and biscuit. “Come on, three minutes left on break.”
He glances up and catches the eye of one of the men, presumably the captain, dressed in a slim dark suit. Nick looks away quickly, but then finds his eyes being pulled back.
Blue meet his brown, and the man gives Nick just a hint of a smile before Nick can tear his eyes away.
Well, perhaps sharing the tearoom won’t be so bad after all, if he’s around.
~~
Charlie is tired and restless.
He did actually get enough sleep last night in the hotel, but due to forgetting his earplugs and the mini fridge flicking on and off all night driving him crazy, the quality of his sleep wasn’t ideal. Moments like these are the worst, when he’s already worked several days in a row, and now he just wants to just turn off his brain and recharge.
The landing in Heathrow was easy; a cloudless day, low winds, no hiccups to report, and he’s thankful for that. The hope of a quick shower at the familiar staff lounge had kept him going, only for the news to break that due to a horrendous plumbing accident, the lounge was going to be out of action for quite some time. Tao had heard one of the cabin crew say that all the carpet had to be replaced, and water had gotten into the floorboards.
So here he is, gathered with his crew in a very stuffy little tearoom. They have two hours before they fly out again. Just enough time for Charlie to pop into the airport Starbucks and order coffees for the team. They’d all had an early start, and small acts of kindness like this always boost team morale. The barista at the Starbucks had written his phone number on the side of Charlie’s iced americano, which was flattering, to say the least, but the guy looked early twenties, and flings like that just weren’t Charlie’s lifestyle any longer.
Moments like this remind Charlie of the difference between how pilots are perceived and what it’s actually like, day in and day out.
Being a pilot can be glamorous; annual trips to Fiji, air miles he can never use up no matter how hard he tries, skiing in Switzerland. But it’s quite exhausting and he misses the days of just having a solid sense of home.
Not that he’s sure he’s ever had that.
Home life wasn’t easy growing up, and moving around throughout his training meant that he couldn’t put down roots properly.
His small apartment in London sits empty most of the month. At present, his home is 30,000 feet above the earth with his crew, it’s where he feels most comfortable, anyways.
But right now, he is distinctly uncomfortable.
A group of guys in hi-vis vests and work boots come in, laughing and chatting loudly.
Ah. Ground crew.
Charlie tries not to flinch. These guys remind him of the rowdy rugby crowd that made his life hell at secondary school. Homophobic meathead-types who used to sit around and just chuck stuff at each other. Granted, that was over fifteen years ago, but it’s always that type.
The largest lad starts making up mug after mug of instant coffee, which makes Charlie feel somehow worse. He’s drunk his fair share of Nescafé, but never by choice.
“Here come the riff-raff,” Tao says, quietly.
“Don’t be a judgmental prick,” Elle elbows him gently. “These guys are the backbone of the industry. I’d like to see you try to last a day hauling bags.”
“Fine, sorry.” Tao sips his espresso and shrinks in a little on himself in response to the call out of his prejudice, but Elle softens her expression and the mood with a gentle dig, “Besides, your arms are basically twigs.”
Elle is good for him, Charlie thinks as he watches their good-natured sparring.
Elle is Charlie’s co-pilot, and Tao is the Inflight Manager, in charge of the cabin crew on long-haul flights. While aircraft-based romances are frowned upon by HR, it’s a story all too common in the industry.
A man comes out of the bathroom, pushing his blonde hair out of his eyes. He’s definitely over six feet tall, broadly built but with a friendly face and pink cheeks. He leans against the kitchen counter and rolls up his sleeves slightly before stretching his wrists.
“And he’s alright, isn’t he?!” Elle smirks, pointing her chin towards the broad blonde as subtly as she can.
“True,” Charlie agrees with a chuckle. “Do you think he could toss me into the baggage hold?” He gives Elle a wicked grin. Boy, do they love people watching.
“With arms like that,” Elle starts, but Tao huffs.
“I don’t get the appeal.” Tao moves his head to block Elle’s view slightly.
“Well it’s a good job you’re straight then, isn’t it, love?” Elle and Charlie share a knowing glance. Tao is in one of his silly moods.
Tao scrunches his nose slightly. “Sure, but he looks like he can’t read.”
“Oi,” Charlie hisses, “cut it out!”
A couple seconds later, Charlie looks over and catches the blonde staring as he sips his coffee. It wasn’t just a look, it was a proper stare. Charlie feels his cheeks flush slightly.
“Bet you £20 they bang,” Elle whispers to Tao.
Tao shakes his head. “No way, you’re on. Hope you’re ready to lose £20.”