Claire always believed she and John worked well together as parents. They were taking their first flight with their toddler, Ethan, to visit John’s family, and Claire had spent the entire week preparing. She packed snacks, toys, wipes, spare outfits, and every little thing a toddler might need. John was in charge of the tickets — a simple, fair split of responsibilities.
Or so she assumed.
At the airport check-in desk, Claire noticed something odd. Her boarding pass said Economy, while John’s said Business. At first, she thought it was a mistake. Maybe the seats got mixed up. But when she asked, John simply said, “Yeah, I upgraded. It was a long week. I just want to relax.”
He said it as if it affected no one else. As if an eight-hour flight with a restless toddler would be easy for her.
Claire waited for him to laugh and say he was joking. He didn’t. “John,” she said quietly, “I’ll be back there alone with Ethan the whole time.”
He shrugged. “You’ve got this. You’re great with him.”
Claire chose not to argue. She knew that pushing the issue in a busy airport would only lead to more stress. So she took her seat in Economy with Ethan, who was excited, energetic, and absolutely not in the mood to sit still. The flight was exactly what she expected — tiring, messy, unpredictable. Ethan spilled his juice, refused to nap, and cried when his stuffed giraffe slid out of reach. Claire spent the hours playing, comforting, and calmly apologizing to anyone disturbed.
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