Читать книгу BOGUS - Jill Ganger - Страница 13

Amad entered the United States with his new Mexican passport. On his flight from Mexico City he concentrated on this change of identity. He had to become Miguel Elian. He thought of personal situations and related them to Miguel so that he wouldn't slip with his history. He became Miguel with a past, a present, and a future. By the time the plane landed in Los Angeles, he felt that he had made the transition to his new identity. He wore his glasses, dressed like an intellectual nerdy teenager, and totally convinced the U.S. Customs Service Agents of his innocent student status in the United States on a full scholarship to a top University.

He had a connecting flight to Philadelphia, after a three hour layover in Los Angeles. Since he had only spent about one hour in customs, he had two hours to spare before his flight even though he had to walk to another terminal for the connecting flight. He walked out of the doors of the Bradley Terminal at LAX and into the sunlight. It was his first step on American soil. At first he felt physically ill at the idea of being in the country that he had been taught to hate. He watched the people as he walked; they really didn't look much different from the people in Mexico except perhaps for their clothes. But they were mostly Americans! They even had smiles on their faces. By the time he arrived at terminal 6, there were many conflicting ideas in his mind.

Miguel was wandering around LAX as he was waiting for his flight to Philadelphia. As he walked around he rehearsed his new identity in his head. He had to really be Miguel while he was away from Libya. He never wanted to slip out of the Miguel persona.

He watched the people walking around the airport. The further he walked away from the Bradley International Terminal the more English he heard being spoken. He also noticed more laughter. Those stupid Americans he thought! What in the world did they have to laugh about, when they were defiling Allah in every way each day! One part of him reacted this way, but another small part of him recognized the joy in these people and somewhere deep down in himself, he wondered.

Finally it was time to get to his gate for the flight to Philadelphia. He entered Terminal 6 and walked towards the proper gate. He had already been checked through and he had his boarding pass, but he realized that he would have to be subjected to the security check again. As he stood in line for the security check, he put his hand in his pocket to reassure himself that his passport was still there. Mentally he prepared himself for the inane questions that the TSA agents would ask. Not at all like Israel where they pretended to be your friend in order to pull pieces of personal information out of you. It was easier here, don't worry, be relaxed, and smile a lot. He pulled his passport out of his pocket when there were just three people in front of him. He had the boarding pass tucked into the passport. He looked at the agents working security. There was one young black man sitting at the scanner used for personal luggage. There was a middle-aged white male checking the passport and boarding pass. He looked briefly at the photos then at the person, and finally stamped the passport, at the same time verifying that the boarding pass actually indicated a flight that departed from this terminal. The third person was a heavyset black woman, interviewing persons of interest based on the other agents observations. What a farce! She seemed to really just be sitting there picking at her four inch fingernails.

His passport reflected his Mexican citizenship, therefore he had to remember that Spanish was supposed to be his native tongue even though his English was impeccable. He would get his American passport from one of his father’s associates once he arrived in Philadelphia. For now he was traveling with a student visa. Miguel placed his carry-on baggage on a tray for the scanner after he was waived through by the man who took the passport, opened it, and closed it without really looking at it at all. The carry-on baggage rolled through the scanner and was ready for pickup by the time he stepped safely through the body scanner. He picked up his bag and started to walk to the gate.

When Miguel got to the gate he saw that it would probably be a full flight. Since he already had his boarding pass, he looked for a seat at the gate. He finally found a single seat between a fat lady and a professional looking business man. The woman had her large tote bag on the seat. When Miguel walked over to the seat, she begrudgingly removed the bag so that he could sit. The businessman just nodded at him as he sat down. He reopened his passport and took out the boarding pass to check on the seat number. He placed his passport in his pocket and kept the boarding pass out. He tried to relax and took a few deep breaths as he had been taught to do in order to hide his anxiety. He had handled himself well throughout his experience in Mexico City and his flight into Los Angeles. Now this journey to Philadelphia would be his last trip for a while. He still had not become a big fan of flying, but he knew that the worst was over. He secretly hoped that he would not have to sit next to the fat lady on the flight. That would not be comfortable at all!

He had almost dozed off when he heard the boarding announcement for his flight to Philadelphia. He quickly stood up with carry-on and boarding pass in hand and walked toward the gate. As the line moved forward, so did Miguel. He handed the boarding pass to the person at the gate and received the stub with the seat number on it. He walked onto the ramp and into the airplane. He found his seat, placed his carry-on in the overhead compartment, and sat down. He had a window seat, so he turned to the window rather than watch whoever sat down next to him. He felt the motion to his seat as the person in the next seat arrived and sat down. He turned around to see a curly red haired teenager getting comfortable. He had on jeans and a crew-neck sweater with white socks and loafers. Miguel thought - at least he wasn't fat! Miguel politely nodded at the boy, who smiled in return. Then Miguel turned back to the window. This kid probably wasn't much younger than he was, but surely his life had been far less productive than Miguel’s. Miguel had seen so much in his short life. He had learned well and was prepared. What did this stupid American teenager know? Perhaps he was going off to school in Philadelphia as well. Now that was a funny thought!

As he dozed off he thought about the women he had been with in his short time in Mexico City and the women he might meet in Philadelphia. He smiled as he remembered the girl he had met in the club, when he first arrived in Mexico City. She had been a very pleasant start to that adventure. He had been with her a few times during his short stay. She had been convenient and willing, when he just wanted to have sex without having to expend any effort. She knew so little about him and although she asked, he was always able to evade any kind of answer. She never knew when he left, and he never said goodbye. He would miss her though! However he was sure, that there would be many women for him in Philadelphia!

He slept through the meal service and only awakened as he felt the plane dip in the sky as it was preparing for landing. He couldn’t believe that he had slept so long. He must have been more stressed than he thought!

At that moment the pilot announced that the plane was descending into the airport in Philadelphia and shortly thereafter the plane landed and rolled to the gate. Miguel stood up, retrieved his carry-on from the overhead bin, and stood in the aisle waiting for the door of the plane to open. When it did the line slowly began to move toward the front of the plane and Miguel eventually stepped onto the ramp leading to the gate.

He was now in Philadelphia which would be his home for at least the next four years. All he knew about his new apartment was the address, 21343 Liberty Street Apt #3. His father had arranged everything, like his father always did. He'd set up the apartment, applied to the university, and even made sure that he had been accepted at the University of Pennsylvania. The University of Pennsylvania had been a mutual choice. It was a fine academic school and highly respected in the engineering fields. Miguel was interested in pharmaceuticals and his father was interested in engineering, therefore this was a school that would suit both of their requirements. All his life he had followed his father's plans for him, but things were starting to change. After all he was a grown man now! Here he was in a strange country - in the land of the infidels. He knew he was being watched by his father's associates, but it didn't matter to him. Thanks to his father, he had money. He had a comfortable place to live, and he could continue his education. These were the things that were important to him now.

As he departed the aircraft in Philadelphia, he took a deep breath. It really didn't smell much different from the air at home, but for some reason the air seemed easier to breathe than the air in Mexico City or Los Angeles.

He found a taxi and gave the driver the address of the new apartment. He helped the driver put his luggage into the trunk of the car, and then sat in the backseat of the taxi and observed the city throughout the ride. It looked like a big dirty city, just as his father had said it would. As they drove through the university area, he realized that the university was basically a safe haven in the middle of the ghettos of Philadelphia. The taxi stopped at a renovated building just slightly outside the grounds of the school. His father had told him that he would have to walk. In his father’s mind he was not yet ready to drive a car in the land of the Infidels. Judging by the unpleasant drive from the airport, Miguel agreed!