As the plane soared through the skies, millionaire Louis Newman noticed a mother-of-three approaching his row. He immediately started complaining.
“Ugh! You can’t be serious! Are you really making her sit here?! Miss, you better do something about it!” Louis grumbled to the stewardess.
“I’m sorry, sir,” the stewardess replied gently, showing him the tickets. “These seats have been assigned to Mrs. Debbie Brown and her children. We can’t do anything about it. I’d request you to kindly cooperate with us.”
“You don’t understand, Miss! I have a crucial meeting with foreign investors. Her children will keep chit-chatting and making noise, and I cannot afford to lose this deal!”
“Sir…” the stewardess started, but Debbie interrupted her. “It’s all right. I can sit somewhere else if other passengers are willing to swap seats with my children and me. That isn’t an issue for me.”
“Not at all, ma’am!” the stewardess shot back. “You’re sitting here because you paid for it, and you have the right to be here! It makes no difference whether someone likes it or not. And sir,” she turned to Louis, “I’d appreciate it if you could be patient until the flight is over.”
Louis was annoyed that the stewardess had refused his request. What irritated him more was being forced to sit next to a woman who seemed out of place in business class, wearing the cheapest clothes on the flight.
He put on his AirPods to avoid conversation and turned his face away as Debbie sat beside him, helping her children secure their seats.
Soon, the boarding process was complete, and the flight took off. It was Debbie and her children’s first time flying business class, so as the plane left the runway, the children began chirping in joy. “Mom!” cried her daughter Stacey. “Look, we’re finally flying! Yay!”
Some passengers turned to look at Stacey and smiled, but Louis scowled. “Listen,” he said to Debbie. “Could you please ask your children to be quiet? I missed my previous flight, and I’m joining a meeting from here. I don’t want any kind of disruption.”
“I’m sorry,” Debbie replied politely, motioning for the children to remain quiet. Louis’s meeting lasted almost the entire flight, and Debbie realized he was a businessman mainly in the fabrics industry, as she noticed him frequently mentioning fabrics and seeing his handbook with designs.
When Louis’s meeting finished, Debbie approached him. “Do you mind if I ask you a question?”
Louis, pleased that his meeting had gone well, decided to be less arrogant. “Umm… Yeah, sure, go ahead.”
“I noticed you had a handbook with fabric samples and designs. Do you work in the clothing industry?”
“Uhhh… Yeah, you could say that. I own a clothing company in New York. We just closed a deal. I hadn’t really hoped it would work, but it did.”
“Oh, that’s lovely. Congratulations! Actually, I run a small boutique in Texas. It’s more of a family affair. It was started by my in-laws in New York. We recently opened a unit in Texas. I was really impressed with the designs you were presenting.”
Louis gave her a sarcastic laugh. “Thanks, lady! But the designs my company makes aren’t like some local or family boutique thing; we hire some of the best designers and just cracked a deal with the best designing company in the world! A BOUTIQUE, SERIOUSLY?!” He muttered loudly while smirking to mock Debbie.
“Oh, well,” Debbie felt humiliated by his comment but kept her composure. “I – I understand. It must be something really huge for you.”
“Something huge?” Louis smirked, shaking his head. “A poor woman like you would never understand what it means. It was a million-dollar deal! Let me ask you this again,” he paused. “I saw your tickets and everything. I know you’re flying business class with us, but trust me, you don’t look like someone who deserves to be here! Maybe try economy next time and look for people who own boutiques like you?”
Debbie’s patience was wearing thin. “Listen, sir,” she said sternly. “I understand it’s my first time flying in business class, and I had trouble figuring out the check-in process, but don’t you think you’re getting ahead of yourself? My husband is on the flight with us, but…”
Before Debbie could finish, an announcement over the intercom signaled their arrival at JFK. Instead of turning off the intercom, the pilot, Captain Tyler Brown, had something more to say.
“Also, I’d like to thank every passenger on this flight, especially my wife Debbie Brown, who is flying with us today. Debbie, honey, I can’t tell you how much your support means to me.”
Louis’s heart skipped a beat and his face flushed with embarrassment when he realized Debbie’s husband was the pilot.
“This is my first time flying an A-class flight, and I was nervous. Thank you to my wife, who assured me everything would be fine and decided to accompany me despite her fear of flying to put my mind at ease. Today is my first day back at work after a long period of unemployment. My wife and I have never had it easy, and we’ve seen a lot of struggles, but I’ve never heard Debbie complain about our situation. So, on this day, which also happens to be the day we first met, which I believe my wife has forgotten, I’d like to propose to her again on this flight. DEBBIE, I LOVE YOU, HONEY!”
Tyler broke protocol, came out of the pilot’s cabin, and proposed to Debbie with a ring on his knees. “Would you like to spend the rest of your life with me again, Mrs. Debbie Brown?”
Everyone on the plane was now focused on Debbie and her children, who seemed like the most beautiful family ever. As Debbie nodded yes, teary-eyed, the passengers applauded, but Louis stood there perplexed and embarrassed. Debbie wasn’t going to let him off easily. She approached Louis before exiting the plane and said, “A materialistic man like you, who only thinks about money, would never understand how it feels to have a loved one around you. And yes, my husband and I live a humble life, but we are very proud of it!”
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