Frequent Flyer
It was here on a worn down wood grain table, seated in a wobbly chair, that Vana observed her mentee with patience and presence. The fluorescent tubes on the ceiling produced an off-putting glare in her glasses. It was so distracting, that she repeatedly had to adjust them as she looked over Leticia’s shoulder. She turned the page on the SAT prep booklet, spoke gently into Lety’s ear.
“This last one’s a bit tricky. Think you got it?”
Her mentee glossed over the page, examining the symbols, numbers, and letters. She read the question aloud with a focused whisper: “if g times x equals two f…”
It was a doable equation for this hoodie-clad teenager. Her frizzy hair draped against her ballpoint pen as she went to work. She did the math all in the margins, carried the 2, and resolved it with no problem at all.
It seemed that Vana’s generosity and care was bearing some truly ripe fruit. She was more than thrilled to provide her in-demand pricy services free of charge to struggling high schoolers like Leticia. At this stage in her career, she had grown tired of exclusively teaching the well-off offspring of successful CEOs and high-profile politicians. For a long time she was available ‘by appointment only,’ but as of late, she could be found with open arms, ready to help, down at the teen center of this public library.
“The answer is B,” Leticia said, filling in the bubble on her worksheet.
Vana checked for the correct answer in her booklet. “Nicely done.”
It was then that Vana’s phone vibrated with a sudden trill. “Well, that’s our time,” She gathered her things into her purse, about ready to go, but not before dispersing some words, which she delivered quite curiously with a high-pitched lilting flare on every vowel. “You are one smart cookie, did you know that?”
Lety let out a nervous, gummy grin. “Thanks Misses B.” Clearly, she was not used to receiving such compliments.
“When you came up to me last month I so wished you had come sooner, but… you’re a fast learner,” Linda laughed, “aren’t you? How are you feeling about the test?”
Leticia tilted her head with a so-so inclination. “A lil nervous, but I think I got it.”
Vana adored Leticia’s low-income, underprivileged confidence. It was the kind of confidence she so desperately wanted to foster when she first decided to give free tutoring lessons.
“Heck yeah,” Vana said. “You’ve so got this. Next stop, college Destination, bright future ahead. Oh, your mother must be so very proud of you.”
She instantly regretted this statement, recalling then a brief offhand remark Leticia had made about her mother and their estranged relationship.
Leticia flashed her eyelashes at Vana. “If I got questions about the test, is it cool if I text you about it?”
“Well, mmm, you can try… but it’s possible I might be on my flight by that time, so…”
Leticia gave an acceptant smile. “Aight. No worries Mrs. B. It’s cool.”
“Remember this…” Vana began, “shooting stars don’t stay propelled in the air forever, they have to make the most out of their momentum. You keep pushing yourself, Lety, there’s no telling where you’ll be headed. “
The luggage store owner worked hard to keep his business intact. He always made sure it was stocked well with the latest and the hottest in travelling accessories. He always wanted it to be clean and inviting for both casual browsers and connoisseurs alike. His business had long withstood the ravages of market bubbles and economic crashes, times of unrest, and other material debacles. Yet its time had finally come. On every corner and empty surface, the store was plastered with those dreaded ‘going out of business’ signs. Big yellow scrolls of impending liquidation and deep discounts.
When he reviewed the surveillance footage of that night’s robbery, the black-and-white low-resolution narrative it conveyed was one of tragic familial entanglement. The back door lock was broken through, thieves came in, snatched up all very nicest of his merchandise.
Though it was clear as day who the culprits were, there was no use taking this tape to the cops. His relationship with his sister was fraught enough as it was. Confronting her about his nephew’s burglary would only make things worse.
When Vana walked in, she looked around at all the barren shelves, wondering if she’d even find what she needed.
“What can I help you with,” the proprietor asked with sleepy, defeated eyes.
“I’m looking for a large suitcase,” she replied. “One that doesn’t have a wobbly handle. You know, this old one, I’ve had it for years in spite of how annoying it is. Last time I took it with me to Greece, it was an absolute nightmare at the Acropolis.
“Was it the fabric type of case?”
“Hard shell.”
“Tsk. Tsk. You need something more good than that. Are you a frequent flyer? Come, follow me. I have these excellent cases from Switzerland. Twenty percent off, just for you.”
As she backed out of her parking space, Vana regarded the rain-soaked facade of this dying store, fatefully admiring its brightly-lit rectangular sign, a brilliant beacon of white in a damp, dreary street. It was the only store remaining in business on a street filled with empty retail space. But not for long. Soon it too would join its fallen brothers and sisters in the small business afterlife.
Tourists and pedestrians would walk past her house every night. It was steeped in a picturesque street, overlooking the beach, surrounded on either side by other elegant abodes just like it. When people passed her home, they’d sneak a glance at the warm tungsten glow it evoked through its cozy interior. Through the glass panorama, they’d occasionally make eye contact with Vana, before walking off and moving on with their frustrated lives, very often thinking to themselves: “how nice her life must be.”
To Vana, the constant presence of tourists, joggers and dog stroller silhouettes were an unremarkable sight. She didn’t much care either if they could see inside her bedroom. It wasn’t like much ever happened there. She was regardless, too fixated on packing her things. Vana still had so many garments to sort through, so many toiletries and things she had to fit into into this new fancy new carrier. After years spent with her old luggage, she had already figured out a system of clothes and pocket divisions that worked perfect for her. Now she had to start from scratch and it was a drag. It was a mundane task which she’d so carelessly procrastinated on. This was a capital sin in her book, one that she often chastised her students for, Leticia included. She was an intelligent little latina, but she too had her lapses in judgement. Lety had waited past the last minute to sign up for her SAT, after sign ups had already closed. It was only after Vana had personally called in several favors that Lety was able to secure a spot in the final exam.
She had the TV set to the news. Everything said was a tragic affair of life outside her comfortable sphere, a reminder of the many blessings life had provided her. It was the kind of news she couldn’t turn away from, much as it hurt her, at times even making her stand still with her hand over her mouth, muttering so desperately: “oh dear lord, those poor people…”
Across the hall, she could hear husband on the phone with their accountant.
“No problem, Gary, I’ll send those PDFs right away, I know we can sort this issue out.” He followed with a grovelling series of ‘uh-huhs' and ‘sure things.’ The sounds of his befuddlement rang in her ears like nails on chalk. In his attempts to project calmness and collectivity, there was still very much a nervy trill to his panicky delivery. “Apologies for the miscommunication. Thanks so much.” With that, he was finished.
When he hung up the phone and entered the bedroom, Vana was quick to interrogate him.
“Did you check us in for our flight tomorrow?”
“No. I’ll get on that.” She noticed his foot tapping impatiently, before he went back into his office.
“How is it with the accountant?” she called out.
“Uh, it’s fine, honey. Really, it’s fine. Nothing to worry about.”
All she could think was how so very simple their taxes were. What could they possibly want to audit?
The next morning, Vana and William arrived at their gate. Vana sat impatiently beneath the departures screen, keeping tabs on every plane that left before theirs. She scratched at the black rests of that airport chair, thinking about how stressed Lety must be about her SAT. She remembered how stressed out she was when she took it herself a millenia ago.
Tight as they were about to let everybody on, she decided, then and there, to bolt up from her chair walk off, towards the exit, out of the airport.
“Vana, where are you going? We’re about to board.”
“I forgot something,” she said before dissapearing.
She made the drive across the highway, down to the high school where the SATs were being held. Parking was a nightmare. All the parents were dropping in their minivans and electric vehicles, picking up their kids after the entry exams had concluded. She searched to see if among the sea of kids, there was anyone who resembled Leticia. She was ready to come running for her, ready to congratulate her and invite her over to a celebratory lunch. When the sight of Lety never came, she double parked and started to worry.
“Excuse me, I’m here to pick up my student.”
“What’s her name?” asked the lady at the desk.
“Leticia Orozco.”
The worker sorted through a spreadsheet on her laptop, then shook her head. She grabbed an unfilled exam from a milkcrate and handed it to Vana. “It seems she never showed up to take her test.”
He was a good-looking young man, in spite of his moppy bucket-shaped haircut, affectionately referred to in his community as an ‘Edgar’ style of hair.. “It’s the style, fool,” he would respond if you ever clowned him about it. Even though he wore a flashy knock-off soccer jersey and in his hand wielded a bubble-gum flavored vape pen, at his core, Jimmy was just a fun-loving, very insecure young man like all the rest. Here at the cafe, him and Leticia made quite a pair of boisterous, rambunctious fools.
“See you sneaky for that shit.”
She sucked her teeth. “What? Cause you wasn’t listening?”
“Nah, you–”
“Shut up,” she said as he grabbed her shoulder and nudged her close to his face. “You hella stupid.” In plain view of all the customers, they kissed. Leticia felt good when she was around this boy and his loving caresse. With his easy-going smile and effortless, foolish charm, things felt right in her life. For once, the world of taunting authority figures and scolding voices didn’t seem so intimidating. She was sure she was in love.
Vana spied on the public display of these young romantics from afar, watching them through the cafe window as they joked and smiled and goofed around. She wanted to confront Leticia about it but wasn’t sure how. So she went in and pretended to bump into her.
“Hi, Leticia.”
“Oh, shit, what’s up Mrs. B? Back from your trip?”
“My flight got cancelled.”
“Damn, I’m sorry,” Lety said as she swallowed a lump in her throat.
“So how did your test go?”
“Uh, good, yeah, went well.”
There was a long silence between the three. Vana huffed and she nodded. She almost felt like dropping the whole topic entirely, but she just couldn’t let go.
“I know you didn’t take it.”
Lety froze.
“Is this the thanks I get? After all those hours I volunteered? Squandering away your chance? After all the strings I had to pull to get you that last minute–”
“Bitch, stop, leave me alone. You're being hella irritating right now.”
“You really should’ve taken the test, goddammit. Do you realize what you’re doing with your life?”
At last, after silently observing the two ladies go back and forth, Jimmy chimed in. “Yo, can’t you hear, lady? You’re getting on her nerves. Just go.”
Vana gave the dirtiest of looks to Jimmy, before walking away and returning home.
She sat at her bed, looking at her reflection in the window, ignoring the hundreds of missed calls and texts from William, who at that point must’ve been halfway around the world, hovering somewhere over the Pacific. She ran her hands through the long strands of silver in her hair. Where once it was rich and auburn in color, now her hair was a constant reminder of all the time she’d lost. Where once, long ago, she would have obsessed over her looks, brushing her hair, freshening her face– hoping to catch the eye of that previous young man from her calculus class, hoping he would take notice of her mousy, introverted self– now she recalled how blissfully free she was of that superficial mentality. Yet now such a recollection of her past youth could only elicit a stark sadness in her heart, a sadness stirred by a myriad of mysteries she was only beginning to unravel. Perhaps the biggest one of all was the one concerning Leticia. What was wrong with that girl? Did she not want to grow up and become like Vana?