After that, we left through another outdoor area, meant to look like a nondescript village in Africa. A group of men played the drums on a stage nearby. The stores were now open; the earlier drips of people had become a full-on flood.
We turned past a sign for a Lion King show and headed down a curving stone path that dipped to go under a bridge. When we came out the other side, we were on an alien planet. Well, a land made to look like one anyway.
Large, strangely colored plants surrounded us on either side. Above us, were several massive rocks, made to look like they were floating in the air. Everything was a mix of natural environment mixed with industrial looking science fiction props.
When we got to our spot, the line for Flight of Passage, we saw that the wait was close to 2 hours. Allison rested her hands on her hips and glared up at the sign, like it had done her a personal insult.
“I thought this might happen,” she said, “When we got here late, our only hope was to jump on Everest and gamble that the morning rush would die down.”
“We got here right when the park opened,” Emily said.
“That’s late,” Allison said, insistent.
“Well, I’m willing to wait for this ride,” Mike said, “It’s very cool. You get on the back of this giant bird-thing, and it feels like you’re flying. It’s like Soarin’ on steroids.”
“That doesn’t sound fun at all,” Emily said.
“Oh agreed,” Allison said, “You would hate this ride. But for the rest of us, it’s probably worth the wait.” She let out a big, resigned sigh.
“Hang on,” Cassie said. She whipped out her cell and made a call.
Meanwhile, the rest of us got lined up. The queue snaked back and around the land, to the point where we were barely on the ‘planet’ anymore. This was going to be rough. I felt bad for Emily, she’d be sitting around by herself for hours and wouldn’t even get the benefit of going on the ride, itself.
Cassie raced over and grabbed my and Allison’s hand. “Come on, we’re all set,” she said.
“Holy fuck,” Mike said, then shushed himself.
“Your guy got us through?” Allison asked.
“Concierge for the win!” Cassie said.
“Damn, we’ve got to get better jobs with higher salaries,” Mike said, shaking his head.
I gave Emily a quick kiss on the cheek, and the four of us raced off to the FastPass lane. We still waited for about fifteen minutes, but that was nothing compared to what we’d been doomed to before.
We followed a bunch of long, concrete corridors that eventually led to a room with roughly twenty individual riding mounts, all lined up in one row. They looked like a mix of a wheel-less motorcycle and a mechanical, headless horse.
We stowed our things in lockers at the back wall, then mounted our giant bird contraptions. The wall in front of us opened, revealing a huge screen, and we took off to the skies. Mike and Allison weren’t kidding — the ride was pretty cool. I may have cheered at one point, though I cannot confirm.
When the ride finished, we got off our mounts. As I went to get my things, I noticed Cassie was standing in the corner, her face half buried. I spun to find Mike, but he and Allison had already left the room. Cautiously, like approaching a tiger, I went over to Cassie.
“You OK?” I asked, very conscious of keeping my accent controlled.
Cassie looked up at me and I saw her face was wet. She’d been crying.
“Sorry,” the beautiful blonde said, “The whole flying thing. I guess it got to me for a sec.”
“That happens a lot, actually.” I turned to find the source of those words. There was a short, rotund cast member standing by the door. I gave her an appreciative nod.
I put my arm around Cassie’s shoulder. “The ride was great.”
“The whole experience was overwhelming,” Cassie said, “I got, like, caught up in it. I’m so embarrassed.”
“Don’t be,” I said, “I got excited too.”
“Clearly, I mean, you’re talking and everything,” Cassie said.
I gave her a tight nod. That was true.
“Sorry,” Cassie said, “I shouldn’t make fun. You’re a good guy, you know that?” Cassie reached for my hand and clasped it. A smile crinkled at the corners of her boundless blue eyes.
I didn’t know what to say. It was strange seeing Cassie vulnerable like this — like catching a Disney character with half their costume off. Suddenly I was very aware of how much the person I’d met was actually a performance. Cassie might be bubbly and beautiful, yes, but she was also an actual human being. Flawed. And I found myself liking her so much more because of that.
Cassie sniffled, then straightened. “I think that’s enough melodrama for one day.”
But the beautiful blonde didn’t let go of my hand until we were back outside the building.
*
We found Emily waiting for us at a nearby restaurant, sitting at an outdoor table. She was grinning excitedly, kicking her legs like a little girl. At first, I thought she was happy to see us. But then I saw what had her so pumped.
Emily held up her phone to show the group: Jack had texted her (when had they exchanged numbers?) that he was coming to meet us for lunch. That text had been about half an hour ago. He’d probably be joining us soon.
So, we ordered food at the restaurant (rice bowls with meat and vegetables, kind of like stir fry) and found ourselves a table inside the air-conditioned cafeteria. Jack arrived right when we sat down.
As soon as Emily saw the older man, she ran and hugged him tight. Cassie and I shared a look — our significant others were finding each other oddly significant. Allison must have noticed the look on my face, as well, because she reached over and squeezed my hand. A gentle reminder that I had someone to be excited about, too. It was easy to feel OK about my wife’s indiscretions with two attractive blondes there to comfort me.
Cassie had already ordered for her husband, so we all dug in. I don’t think I realized how much energy I’d expended. That huge bowl of food disappeared far too quickly.
“How was your time with your kids?” Emily asked, brightly.