„Come on kids, time to go – is everyone ready?“ and they came tumbling out of the house and jumped into the car. Joe loved kids, but sometimes they were a handful. Rosa his wife wanted to clean the place out. Her mother was coming to stay with them for a few weeks and so she told Joe to take the children to the airport with him to pick her up. She could then organise things at home and was sure the kids would have fun watching the planes landing and taking off.
“Daddy we want to go in an aeroplane” the twins Jenny and Jill decided, in unison of course.
“Don’t be silly” answered Joel, the oldest. “You can’t just go in a plane, you have to buy tickets and have passports and all that sort of thing, don’t they daddy?”
“Of course, son, planes are not like trains and busses. It all has to be organised.”
“What’s organised, daddy” asked Jenny
“Well it’s like when grandma is coming. She had to book her flight a long while ago, and make sure that all her documents were ok. You have to prove who you are when you get on a plane and travel to another country. Grandma lives where mummy grew up. Now daddy and mummy live a long way away and you can only get there quickly by flying.”
“You see Jenny” Jill said “it is not that easy, but I am sure if we get to the airport we can work something out.”
“Forget it girls, we are now arriving and the first thing I have to do is to check that grandma’s flight is on time.” Joe was hoping it would be as he was not looking forward to looking after five kids while the plane was delayed. He entered the airport, and went to the tracking screens to see how the flight was.
“Oh no”
“What’s the matter daddy” asked Joel “isn’t grandma going to come?”
“That’s ok son, she will be arriving, but the flight has one hour’s delay” and Joe was wondering what to do with five inquisitive and noisy children at the airport for more than an hour.
“Daddy, look a big plane” said the twins and they both rushed over to the windows. Joe found that was the solution so he took all the children to the windows to watch the planes arriving and leaving.
“Daddy, I have to go pee pee” that was Julio the youngest son.
“Can’t it wait son?”
“No daddy, I have to go NOW, otherwise I will have an accident” and Julio was moving from one leg to the other to make sure that his father realised the urgency of the matter.
“OK, Julio, I will come with you to the toilet. Is there anyone else that has to go?” He thought he would ask the other kids just to get it all done and done with.
“Me and Jill have to go as well” said Jenny. This was now getting complicated. Joe could go with Julio, but Jenny and Jill would have to find their own way.
“OK girls, the ladies is next to the mens, so when me and Julio go in the toilette, you two girls go into yours, but please wait for me outside when you are finished. Is that a deal?”
“Sure daddy, no problem.”
“And you other two remain at this window and do not go anywhere, is that clear?”
The two other children nodded in synchronisation. They were boys and were too interested in the planes to want to wander off. At least that was what daddy Joe was hoping.
So Joe and Julio with the twins went over to the toilets.
After a while Joe asked his son “Finished Julio?”
“Not yet daddy, I have to make more than pee pee.” And Joe kept his fingers crossed that the girls would be obediently waiting. They would have waited had they not seen one of the pilots walk pass.
“Do you fly planes?” they asked him.
“That’s my job, yes.”
“Are you flying now?”
“I will be in a few minutes. I have to go. Bye girls.” And the pilot disappeared into the crowds. Well not quite, Jill and Jenny decided to follow; it might be their big chance to fly. They found airports were really interesting places. They even had moving walkways, and so they decided to try them out, after all the pilot man was also at the front on the walkway. Eventually they arrived at an entrance where people were showing their documents.
“Jill, do you think this is the bit where daddy said you have to have passports and things.”
“Think so Jenny, but no problem. If we make ourselves small we can creep in and they won’t see us walking past the desk.” The girls could be very sly sometimes and they soon arrived on the other side of the passport control with no problem. They did not see the pilot any more, but things were really interesting in this part of the airport. They were even nearer to the aeroplanes; the planes were in front of the glass windows.
In the meanwhile daddy and Julio were finished and left the toilets. Of course there was no Jenny or Jill waiting outside.
“Dad, looks like the girls have disappeared. Shall I go and search for them?”
“No Julio, you stay with me. First of all we will have a look to see if your brothers are still where I left them.”
Joe breathed a sign of relief when he saw his other two sons were still looking at the planes, but they were thirsty.
“Dad can we have a cola? There is a machine over there.”
“First of all have you seen the twins?”
“Yes daddy, we saw them. They were riding on that moving staircase following a man with a uniform.”
Now Joe was really confused. The twins were missing and he had to go and look for them, but what to do with the three boys?
“OK boys, I will buy each of you a cola from the machine, but only if you promise to STAY here. No moving, understood?”
“Yes, daddy, but what if we have to go pee pee?”
“Do you have to go now,”
“No dad”
“Then keep it that way. I have to go and look for your sisters. Understand” and Joe was wishing that his mother-in-law was not arriving and that his wife did not have to stay at home to clean the place up. Joe loved children, but was also wondering if it was a good idea to have so many.
In the meanwhile - “Jenny let’s go down that slope where all the people are going.”
“Do you think we can Jill, all those people got special cards before they started walking down here.”
“No problem, we can make ourselves small again. Look I think that is the aeroplane. Now we can go flying.”
“And just where do you two young ladies think you are going?” said a lady to them.
“We are going to fly in an aeroplane” they both answered together.
“I don’t think so, where are your mummy and daddy?
“Daddy is in the airport looking after our brothers.”
“Then I think it would be a good idea if you go back to your daddy. You have to have a boarding card to get on the plane and you only get that if you have a ticket.”
“But when we have a ticket for the bus or train we don’t need a boarding card.”
“Flying is something different. Can you tell me your names.”
“I’m Jenny and that is Jill”
“Fine, but do you have another name?”
“You mean the name we all have, that’s easy, we are Jenny and Jill Gonzalez.”
“Well I think it would be a good idea if you go with my colleague. She will take you back to the part of the airport where you will find your daddy.”
Joe had given each of the sons a glass of Cola and was now on his way through the airport looking for the twins when suddenly an announcement came over the loudspeaker.
“Would Mr. Gonzalez please report to the registration desk. His twin daughters are waiting for him there.”
Joe breathed out a sigh of relief. When he took his daughters into his arms, he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
“Hey daddy, we were on an aeroplane, but it wouldn’t fly until we left. They said we had to have a card. Can you buy us a card.”
“No, that would cost too much money. Now we will go back to the boys and wait until grandma arrives.”
“But daddy”
“No discussions, is that clear?”
“Yes daddy” and Joe and his daughters went back to the window where Joe had left the sons.”
It would have been a good thing when his sons were all waiting for him, but there was no-one at the window. Joe nearly gave up but suddenly saw his sons walking towards him.
“Where have you been now?”
“Its ok daddy” said Julio “my brothers wanted to go pee pee so I showed them where it was.”
Then the announcement came that grandma’s flight was landing. Joe took the children to the arrival lounge and grandma appeared. She hugged the children one after the other.
“This is a wonderful reception Joe; all my grandchildren together to greet me. Did you have any problems at the airport?”
Rita's "Riting" Challenge #11
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