First Flight

The week before the Abuja trip passed faster than anyone expected.

Between client follow-ups, production deadlines, and mentorship sessions, Zai barely had time to think.

Until Friday afternoon.

HR sent the travel itinerary.

Her flight was scheduled for Tuesday morning.

8:10 a.m.

It would be her first time on an airplane.

She read the email three times.

Not because it was complicated.

Because she couldn’t quite believe it.

Amaka leaned over her shoulder.

“What are you smiling at?”

“I’m flying.”

Amaka blinked.

“For the first time?”

Zai nodded.

“I’ve never even entered an airport before.”

Amaka laughed.

“Just don’t ask them where the driver is.”

Zai burst into laughter.

“I hate you.”

“No, you don’t.”

That evening, she got home carrying a printed copy of the itinerary.

Tobi grabbed it before she could sit down.

“Flight?”

He looked up dramatically.

“So it’s true.”

“My sister has become a big woman.”

Mama Zainab collected the paper from him.

“Leave her alone.”

She adjusted her glasses.

“Tuesday…”

She looked at Zai.

“What time do you have to leave home?”

“The company wants me at the airport by six.”

Mama Zainab nodded.

“We’ll all wake up.”

“You don’t have to.”

“We’re waking up.”

The discussion was over.

Saturday morning brought an unexpected problem.

Zai opened her wardrobe.

Then sighed.

She had plenty of work clothes.

But almost nothing suitable for a client dinner.

She stood there quietly.

“What happened?”

Mama Zainab asked.

“I need something formal.”

Her mother looked into the wardrobe.

Then looked back at her.

“We’ll figure it out.”

“How?”

“You’ve forgotten who raised you.”

An hour later, they visited a tailor in Surulere.

Not to buy a new outfit.

To alter one.

Mama Zainab carefully removed a navy blue dress from a garment bag.

Zai stared.

“I’ve never seen this before.”

“You have.”

“You were too young to remember.”

She smiled softly.

“I wore this to your father’s cousin’s wedding.”

Zai gently touched the fabric.

“You kept it all these years?”

“I keep things that matter.”

The tailor spread the dress across the table.

“It’s beautiful.”

Mama Zainab nodded.

“It needs a few adjustments.”

The tailor smiled.

“We’ll modernize it.”

Zai looked uncertain.

“Mummy…”

“I should buy my own.”

Her mother shook her head.

“One day you will.”

“But today…”

She smiled warmly.

“…go and create new memories in one that already carries ours.”

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Monday morning at LuxeThread began with a briefing.

The Abuja delegation would include:

Adanna.

Zai.

The Head of Retail.

The Sales Director.

And Chinedu from Production.

Raymond wasn’t there.

He was already in Johannesburg attending supplier meetings.

Before they left the conference room, Adanna handed everyone a slim folder.

“Our client’s history.”

“Their business model.”

“Their challenges.”

“Their recent expansion plans.”

Zai flipped through the pages.

She looked surprised.

“You expect us to study all this?”

Adanna smiled.

“I expect you to respect your client.”

Later that afternoon, Zai found Daniel in the cafeteria.

He noticed the travel folder.

“So it’s tomorrow.”

“Yes.”

“Nervous?”

“A little.”

“You’ll be fine.”

He stirred his tea.

“Can I give you one piece of advice?”

“Please.”

“When clients ask questions…”

“They’re rarely only asking about the product.”

She frowned.

“What do you mean?”

“They’re trying to decide whether they trust the person answering.”

She nodded slowly.

“I’ll remember that.”

Meanwhile, hundreds of kilometres away, Raymond finished a long meeting in Johannesburg.

As he walked back to his hotel, his phone buzzed.

It was a photo from the LuxeThread group chat.

The Abuja team standing together after their final briefing.

Everyone looked focused.

Prepared.

Confident.

He smiled when he saw Zai standing between Chinedu and the Sales Director.

Not because she stood out.

Because she looked like she belonged.

He typed a single message into the group.

Safe travels tomorrow.

Make us proud.

Nothing more.

No private message.

No separate conversation.

Just one message for the entire team.

Tuesday morning arrived while Lagos was still asleep.

At 4:45 a.m., Mama Zainab knocked gently on Zai’s bedroom door.

“It’s time.”

Within thirty minutes, the entire family was awake.

Tobi insisted on carrying her suitcase downstairs.

“I’ve got it.”

“No.”

He grinned.

“This is airport luggage.”

“It deserves respect.”

Even Mama Zainab laughed.

By six o’clock, the company bus arrived outside the estate gate.

Adanna was already inside.

“So punctual.”

She smiled as Zai climbed aboard.

“My mother would never forgive me for being late.”

“I’d like to meet her someday.”

“I’m sure she’d like that.”

The drive to the airport was filled with light conversation.

Nothing about work.

Nothing about targets.

Just ordinary stories.

For a little while…

They weren’t executives and employees.

They were simply people beginning a journey.

As they entered the departure terminal, Zai stopped walking.

She looked around slowly.

The high ceilings.

The rolling suitcases.

The departure screens.

Families saying goodbye.

Business travellers hurrying through security.

She had seen airports in films.

But standing inside one…

Felt completely different.

Adanna noticed.

“First time?”

Zai smiled sheepishly.

“Is it that obvious?”

“A little.”

She pointed toward the security checkpoint.

“Come.”

“I’ll show you how it works.”

For the next twenty minutes, Adanna patiently explained every step.

Check-in.

Boarding pass.

Security screening.

Departure gate.

She never rushed.

Never made Zai feel embarrassed.

As they finally reached the waiting lounge, Zai looked out through the large glass windows.

A plane slowly taxied toward the runway.

She whispered almost to herself,

“I used to think people on planes belonged to another world.”

Adanna heard her.

She smiled gently.

“No.”

“They just kept saying yes when opportunities found them.”

Zai looked at the aircraft again.

For the first time in her life…

The sky didn’t feel so far away.

Engagement Question

What was the first experience in your life that made you realize your world had become bigger than you ever imagined?

To be continued…