The Girl at Gate 12

It's 6:15 in the morning at Gate 12. Jun is sixteen, and he's very tired. His flight to Miami is at 6:40. Then the screen changes. The flight is late. The new time is 9:15.

The girl next to him laughs. "Three hours! Hi, I'm Noa." "Hi. I'm Jun." "Okay, Jun, let's play a game," she says. "Look at the people here. Where are they from? Guess."

"That man in the big hat is from Texas," Jun says. "The woman with the little dog is from Paris," Noa says. The man in the hat hears them. "I'm from Canada," he says with a smile. They're wrong a lot, but they laugh a lot too.

At eight o'clock, Noa asks, "And you, Jun? Is Miami your home?" "No. Miami is only a stop. I'm going to Quito. My grandparents are there." Noa's eyes are big. "Quito? Me too! My aunt lives there. Is your next flight at 3:30?" "Yes!"

On the plane, Noa is in seat 14C. Jun is in seat 22A. She walks to his row and smiles at the woman next to him. "Excuse me. Can we change seats, please?" The woman says yes. Noa sits down next to Jun. "Hi again," she says.