“Well… I have the aisle seat. If you’d like, we could switch. Maybe you’d be more comfortable there—or you might even find another seat once boarding finishes.”
The woman looked surprised. A moment later she grabbed her bag and moved.
The middle seat was now empty.
But Ethan didn’t sit in the aisle.
He slid into 23B, beside the young mother.
“Hi,” he said gently. “Don’t worry about her. Some people forget they were babies once too.”
The woman looked up.
Her eyes—dark and tired—filled with relief.
“Thank you, sir. I’m really sorry… we’ve been at the airport since four in the morning. I think Noah feels how nervous I am.”
“I’m Ethan,” he said, extending his hand. “And you have nothing to apologize for.”
She hesitated before shaking it.
“I’m Isabella.”
Ethan glanced at the baby.
“Mind if I try something?”
He made a soft clicking sound with his tongue and waved a finger in front of the baby’s face.
To Isabella’s surprise, the crying stopped.
The baby stared at Ethan curiously… then grabbed his tie.
Ethan laughed.
“Well… I think he likes me.”
Isabella laughed too—her first real laugh in days.
“I guess he has good taste.”
During the long flight across the Atlantic, an unexpected connection formed.