‘Okay, then, if you give me your name, I’ll be able to tell if your friend has checked in.’
‘Finn Walsh.’
She fake smiled, but with great conviction. ‘Please follow me, Mr Walsh.’
Finn trailed behind the attendant to the check-in counter and waited while she tapped away at a keyboard. Finn’s hand had begun to shake and he was sweating. He’d said no to all the screening questions but nobody had asked if he was suffering intense cocaine withdrawal symptoms.
‘Can you please confirm the other passenger’s name?’ the attendant said.
‘Kelly O’Mara.’
‘According to our system, she checked in half an hour ago.’
‘What? Half an hour? Then where the hell is she?’
‘Finn. I’m here.’
He spun around.
And she was. Kelly was there, standing in front of him. The relief washed over him in such a flood, he felt like he was going to weep. She’d made it. He’d convinced her. She was going to be okay.
‘You’re our last two passengers to board,’ the attendant said. ‘If you could please present your boarding passes, we’ll get you straight onto the plane.’
Kelly was already holding hers. She handed it to the flight attendant, who ran it over the scanner.
Finn was rummaging in his bag to find his pass when his phone started ringing. He found that first and was about to silence it when he saw the name on the screen. Esme. ‘I’m sorry, I have to take this,’ he said. ‘I’ll be one minute.’
The attendant dropped the fake smile routine. ‘Sir, we don’t have time. We need you to board immediately.’
Kelly had already started walking down the gangway. She stopped and looked back at Finn, one hand on the handle of her wheelie carry-on bag, the other clutching an old black briefcase.
Finn answered his phone. ‘Esme, I’m about to get on a plane. Can I call you later?’
‘What? Where are you going?’
‘I’ll tell you when I’m back. I’ve got to go.’
‘Do not get on that plane.’
The tone in Esme’s voice stopped Finn dead. ‘What’s happened?’ he said.
‘Your audition has been moved up. It’s now midday tomorrow. Wherever the hell you were going, don’t.’
‘Fuck,’ Finn said. His mind raced to calculate when he would need to leave Newcastle to make it back in time for his audition. He couldn’t make the numbers line up in his mind, but he concluded it would be early. Really early. He’d be a wreck, though. Tired, trembling from withdrawals, looking like shit. Maybe he could get a hit in Newcastle? He’d have to find it tonight so he could double down before the flight back. But what if there was a delay? What if he couldn’t get a ticket? Based on his surprise at how many people were travelling to Newcastle this evening, it was likely just as many were trying to get out. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
This was the biggest audition of his life. There was no way he could risk missing it. The smart decision would be to stay in Melbourne. And Kelly was here now. She was practically on the plane. She’d be fine from here on.
Finn looked up at Kelly. She was staring straight at him from halfway down the gangway. Even from that distance, he could see the fear and doubt in her eyes. But he had to be smart about this. Had to make the right decision for the long-term future for both of them. Staying was the smart and sensible play. Staying was his only choice.
‘I’ll be there, Esme.’
‘You better be, Finn. This is your last chance, after all the shit you’ve been pulling lately. I can’t keep you on the roster if you fuck this up.’
‘I said I’ll be there.’
Finn hung up before Esme could say another word, handed his boarding pass to the attendant and strode towards Kelly. Staying with her was his only choice.
***
