Making A Critical Decision Amid A National Emergency - Part 2

With my handcarry hoisted over my shoulder, I scurried over to the A-Train station. I slid my metro card through the metal card reader and brisk-walked down the escalator to level 1. About five minutes later, the A-Train arrived and I was on my way to John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The subway car was emptier than usual. Thank god! Because the coronavirus was spreading fast and people were testing positive left and right, I had to maintain a 6-feet distance and mask my face. Since the corner seat was occupied, I settled for a vacant one near the middle. Nobody sat on either side of me. I clasped my hands, squeezed my legs together and remained as still as a corpse. I didn't touch anything. The only time I made a movement was to check the time on my phone. I needed to make this flight at all cost. Something told me that if I somehow missed it, I will not be seeing my family for a while. A long while.

At around 3:30 p.m., I arrived at Howard Beach Station which led me to JFK International. I took the escalator up to the second floor, got in line to purchase my ticket for the AirTrain and headed to the waiting area. After a few minutes, I hopped onto the Howard Beach Train, which took me to Terminal 5. About 20 minutes later, I had arrived.

I made my way inside and bolted across the terminal until I spotted the TSA security line. There were only about 5-10 people ahead of me. I finally let out the breath I was holding. I was going to make it. After an additional 15 minutes, I was on my way to the gate. Fortunately, I found a seat right by it.

I pulled out my phone and dialed my mom's phone number. My dad was with her so I broke the news to both of them simultaneously. I told them that I'm coming to California. Despite the fact that I was emotionally scattered and I was cognizant that there would be consequences to my decision, I prioritized my parents' happiness over everything. And in that moment, that's all that mattered.

It was finally time to board the plane. Because of COVID-19, the flight attendants had all of us line up in three separate sections. Each section had a boarding pass scanner. All we had to do was hold the boarding pass facing down, so the machine can scan the barcode, and then once the light turned green, the doors opened and we could go through. One by one each of us boarded the aircraft.

The plane was nearly full. I had the aisle seat. The only two empty seats were the ones next to me. I had the whole row to myself. I should've been happy but the entire ride I was on edge. I sat on the plane exactly the way I had on the subway. When the flight attendants came around with snacks and beverages, I only opted for water. I took short naps throughout the flight but stayed awake for most of it. And then we finally landed.

I shot a text to my parents but told them not to leave until I've exited the plane. For some reason, our gate hadn't been set up. After about 15 minutes, I finally exited the airplane and headed toward the pick up area.

My parents were on their way. About 10 minutes later, I spotted our navy-blue Toyota Camry. Both of them were grinning from ear to ear. I waved and smiled back. I walked around and placed my handcarry in the trunk. I opened the door to the backseat of the car and slid inside. And then we were on our way home.

Although it wasn't smart of me to travel all the way across the country, especially when my phone was flooded with notifications about how this person and that person tested positive for COVID-19, I had to do it. I did it for my dad. I did it to see the smile on his face. He was happy to have me home. And again, that's all that mattered.