Franklin Delaney was on the brink of raising his voice at the flight attendant who had just informed him that an elderly passenger would be sitting next to him.
“Not! There’s no way I’m going to sit next to that lady!” he exclaimed, his frustration evident.
The flight attendant, maintaining her composure, responded calmly, “Yes, sir, this seat belongs to her.”
Despite Franklin’s frown and obvious reluctance, the stewardess gently explained that there was nothing that could be done to change the seating arrangement.
“There’s no way that’s real. These chairs are ridiculously expensive, and there is no way she could ever afford to purchase one of them. Take a look at what she’s wearing!” Franklin pointed to the elderly woman’s attire, nearly letting out an angry shout. Stella felt quite embarrassed. She was upset that others could see that the clothing she was wearing was inexpensive even though she was wearing her finest clothes.
As Stella Taylor, an elderly lady, seemed to gaze down at her feet, other guests in business class turned to stare at her and her companion. The argument persisted, causing delays in boarding the aircraft. Franklin was confronted by several more flight attendants, all attempting to reassure him.
Surprisingly, several people on the flight shared the businessman’s viewpoint. They concluded that the lady couldn’t have paid for the seat, so they asked her to leave. Stella’s life was forever changed by this event, which she describes as the most embarrassing thing she’s ever been through.
“Please don’t worry, Miss. If there is still availability in the economy section, I would want to sit there,” she replied, laying a kind touch on the arm of the stewardess. “I spent all my funds on this seat, but it’s best not to trouble others.”
Stella had previously shown her a great deal of consideration at the airport because the lady became disoriented. At 85 years old, she had never left the country in her entire life, and the Seattle–Tacoma International Airport had acquired a reputation for being somewhat perplexing. However, the airline ultimately provided her with an attendant who stayed by her side throughout the whole procedure. Together, they made it to the gate in time for her flight, which was bound for New York.
The fact that the man helped her pick up her belongings demonstrates that he wasn’t being unreasonable.
Even after showing the passenger’s boarding card to the businessman, the flight attendant didn’t want to get into a battle with him since he wouldn’t believe Stella was sitting next to him even if she was there. The lady glared at Stella with an angry expression on her face, even though Stella was not the target of her ire.
“No, ma’am. I don’t care what anybody thinks; you bought this seat, and you have every right to occupy it,” the flight attendant said to the passenger.
She turned around once again to face the guy and threatened to phone airport security to have him escorted out of the terminal. After that, the guy heaved a breath of relief and invited Stella to sit next to him on the couch. When the aircraft took off, Stella became so startled that she accidentally let go of her handbag.
To her great relief, the guy was not unreasonable and assisted her in regaining possession of her belongings. However, her ruby locket did fall out, and the guy whistled at the item as it dropped to the ground. “Wow, this is really out of the ordinary,” he said.
“What exactly do you mean by that?” Stella asked.
“As an antique jeweler, I can tell you that this locket is priceless. There is no doubt that they are genuine rubies.” “Am I making a mistake?” the man said as he gave the locket back to the woman. Stella retook possession of it and peered at it intently.
“To tell you the truth, I have no clue,” Stella said, recalling that her mother had passed it down to her after receiving it from her father many years before. “When my father didn’t come home, she handed it to me.”
The man questioned, “What exactly took place?” “I apologize. My name is Franklin Delaney. I would like to offer my sincere apologies for my actions before. My life is now going through some difficult transitions, and my behavior should not have been like that at all. Could I inquire about your father and what happened to him?”
“During World War II, my father served in the military as a fighter pilot. When the United States entered the war, my dad had to go home, but before he did, he handed this necklace to my mother as a promise that he would come back. They have an intense affection for one another. Even though I was only four years old at the time, I can recall that day quite well,” Stella recounted, revealing that he never came back.
“That’s sad.”
“It is. War is pointless. It leads to absolutely nothing. And my mum was never able to get over the pain of losing my father. She was a shadow of her former self, and the two of us just about made it. But she never once considered selling it, not even when circumstances at home were at their worst. When I was ten years old, she handed it to me and instructed me to keep it. She did not take it back. But even though I’ve been going through a tough financial situation, I’ve never once considered selling it. Sincerity dictates that its true worth is inside,” Stella confessed to Franklin as she laughed and delighted as she opened it.
The locket included a photograph of a young child on its inside.
Within the locket were two different photographs. The first was in sepia tone, depicting a couple, while the second displayed a newborn. “They are my mother and father,” Stella said with a wistful tone.
Franklin bowed his head and gazed at the other photo in silence. Suddenly, a question popped into his head: “Is that your grandchild?”
“No, that’s not my husband; that’s my kid, and he’s the reason I’m on this trip.”
“You’re going to see him, aren’t you?”
“No, this is the last word.” Stella shared her story. “Do you remember how I said I was having trouble paying my bills? Well, many years ago, when I was in my 30s, I became pregnant. But my partner disappeared without a trace. I had custody of my child for a few months, but it became clear that I wouldn’t be able to provide him with a happy and healthy life. With no one to turn to for help, and my mother already gone after battling dementia, I made the difficult decision to place him for adoption.”
“You two reconnected later.”
Stella had found her son and was traveling with him for a specific purpose on the airplane.
“I tried to reach out to him. Thanks to those DNA test results, I was able to locate him. I got a local youngster to help me send him an email. But Josh, who shares the same name, replied that he didn’t need my help and that he was doing fine on his own. I reached out to him multiple times, begging for his forgiveness, but he never responded to any of my subsequent letters.”
Franklin seemed puzzled. “If that’s the case, then I don’t understand why you’re even on this flight. You said you were there for him, right?”
“He’s piloting this flight.” Stella explained, “It’s his birthday today, January 22, 1973, and I don’t know how much time I have left in this world. I just wanted to make sure I was there for at least one of his birthdays.” Stella smiled at Franklin, expressing that this was her only option, before returning her attention to the locket. “It’s the least I can do,” she said.
Unaware of Franklin wiping a tear from his face, or that several flight attendants and many other passengers had heard her story, Stella continued, “Anyway, this is one of his longest routes, so I get to spend five hours with my son,” as she finally closed the locket and placed it in her luggage. “It means the world to me.”
As the pilot’s heartfelt announcement echoed through the cabin, everyone on board erupted into applause and cheers. Stella’s perspective was that those five hours passed by in the blink of an eye, and when the pilot’s voice came over the intercom again, she braced herself for the usual landing announcement.
But to her surprise, the pilot continued, “And also, I want to take this moment to give a special shoutout to my birth mother, who is flying with us for the first time today. Hey, Mom, just hang tight until we touch down.” Franklin smiled, feeling a sense of relief and admiration for John’s heartfelt gesture, while Stella’s eyes filled with tears of joy. At least he had extended an apology.
Once the jet safely landed, John went against protocol by leaving the cockpit and heading straight for Stella. With arms wide open, he embraced her in a warm hug, causing even more applause and cheers from the passengers and crew.
In a soft voice, John thanked Stella for looking out for him all those years ago. He admitted that after responding to her initial email, he realized he wasn’t actually upset with her for giving him up; he just didn’t know how to respond. He expressed his regret for not replying sooner and for not understanding her perspective earlier. Stella assured him that there was no need to apologize, as she understood his feelings completely.