Landing 1

The plane took off, carrying her through the second and final part of her journey. Her journey to freedom, her new life…

As they left the European night far below them, the passengers made themselves comfortable to sleep off the biggest part of their 11-hour flight.

The cabin soon became quiet. Too excited to sleep, she stared deep into the darkness behind the porthole, reflecting on the last 4 years of her life.

The beginning

Somewhere on the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa, she was sitting at the kitchen table, her face buried in her hands, her mind numb, her heart devoured by desperation.

She had given him her best. Her youth, her loyalty, her love. She tried hard to prevent things from coming to this; she discussed, advised, guided, and even warned him, but never threatened.

All in vain. She never saw a positive change, and now this! An avalanche of lies, abuse, evil, and maltreatment. She had been a naive toy in the hands of a sadist who continued the terror of her childhood.

She raised her head, looking around the place that she used to call her home for so many years.

Is this where I want to live for the rest of my life? With him? No way!! No!! I’m done, I want out, I’ll leave. Where to? Different town, same country?

Why? To endure the same mentality? Not being able to heal from what they normalised? Not being able to talk about what society is hiding under the carpet? To live among the same hypocrites who have new faces on?

Fucking no! I want to go far away, to a place where mothers don’t raise their daughters only to endure and their sons only to claim. I want to travel to another continent, if possible.

“Where?” her mind insisted.

After taking her time, the woman decided: America, USA.

Action!

She spent hours planning and searching through official sources. Cost of living, house rentals, job offers, the type of visa she needed, and how she would obtain a work permit.

It got discouraging at this point, as bureaucracy and most procedures seemed extremely complicated.

She redirected her search to Europe this time, excluding the South because her country of origin is a part of it. She chose a country which she believed was in the heart of things and was also a member of the European Union.

This would simplify all the procedures regarding her relocation; there’s no need for a visa or a passport, the same currency is used, and there are no obstacles to getting a work permit.

She only needed to speak the language. She was passionate about learning foreign languages, so learning one more wouldn’t be a problem.

Case solved! Next steps:

She found a job that offered a boost to her self-esteem and the chance to save money for her plans after covering her own expenses.

She signed up for foreign languages classes

She quit smoking and started working out daily, building up a healthy, beautiful body that made her look younger than her years.

Beautiful people

Meanwhile, she got active on social media platforms. She began to communicate online with people from every part of the world, learning about different cultures.

She made deep, meaningful connections with people who had beautiful souls, her beautiful people, as she called them. She shared her thoughts and dreams with a very select few who became her friends.

Love

Apart from her friends and her tribe of beautiful people, she also had some followers. One day, she noticed that the number of her followers had increased, and when she checked one of the profiles, it drew her attention.

It belonged to a well-known American actor. She doubted it was really him, but unlike some of her followers, he never sought her attention, and this made a good impression on her.

They started chatting on that online platform. She was very cautious about him being a scam; she analysed every word he said, the tone of the conversation, the way he shared personal information, everything.

She listened carefully to her body for any warning signs, but nothing alarmed her.

Her reason didn’t object to this communication. But she still couldn’t let herself believe it was really him. She thought he was a huge fan of the actor rather than the actor himself.

Torn between her fondness for him and the uncertainty of his identity, she often thought about ending this communication, but she never did. With time, this communication evolved into a connection, then a bond.

The mutual fondness became love. The sharing of thoughts and opinions became trust. And the texts sometimes became voice mail and Zoom calls.

He even video-called her one day while he was shooting for the cover of the upcoming movie, and the crew shouted hello to her.

After that, she didn’t doubt him again.

They left nothing unsaid: what they loved or disliked, their favourite things, their tastes, their reactions in different situations, their beliefs, their wishes and dreams. They discussed their similarities and their differences.

She told him she was a lyricist and songwriter, and she sent him lyrics and videos of her singing some of them. He was ecstatic.

He kindly asked her to reconsider going to the European country and give more thought to her first choice, which was to go to the USA instead. He was sure they could make it work.

And after almost four years of an online relationship, he was thrilled to hear that she chose to go to the USA.

Back to now

She was surprised to see the sunlight beaming through the porthole. She hadn’t shut her eyes for even a split second, but she felt fresh and more alive than ever.

She fastened her seatbelt as the plane started to land.

After some time, luggage in hand, she wondered whether he would pick her up himself or, given his fame, he would send someone else.

With shiny eyes, she looked around…

Nobody was there for her.