In the air it felt almost easier than usual for Aiden to dream. He was connected to a network, he knew. His whole life this was explained like a dreamcatcher. Something he was born with. Two hands, pink and brown, a hide attached to lots of sinew. And this other thing, unseen but connected.
He could remember being a child, and growing up. When that happened things didn't seem to change. The tension he felt at being called a man. When somewhere in him was something else.
That trapped feeling. Swimming in circles. He thought of the park and the tanks and the pools. Something like how he had felt on the reservation. Afraid to call out in alarm, to attract poachers. His mind drew an animated scenario of a whale drawing up on it's elbows to take a deep breath of air on concrete. Air to release trapped pain brought by water falling from his body.
He wondered what the oceanic equivalent of earthen would be?
The plane began to descend, and it was without a shred of regret that it dawned on him: he had done it. Left em all behind.
The image of his nephew behind the glass made his heart ache a little. But the boy's life was hardly improved with Aiden's presence. His complexities only shone light on things Aiden would rather let rot. So, better to be somewhere else while this kept happening.
Pal was his friend's name. Remembering this replaced the grimace on his face with a smirk. When airplane mode went off, this was the top of many missed calls.
Of course Pal wouldn't be meeting him at the airport. He was a very busy man. So, Aiden could expect to meet the house staff at the small airport which mostly catered to private charters like the one he was transferring to. This part of his journey bored him, but he had not just wanted to show up to the park unannounced. It was a delicate situation and he wanted to treat it with respect. So he planned to spend a little time at Pal's place to make a plan for how to proceed.