Leslie pressed her fingers against her temples as she walked toward the plane, her head throbbing from the night before. She had spent hours at one of Atlanta’s hottest clubs, trying to lose herself in the music and flashing lights. Now, she was paying the price.
“Amy!” Leslie called out as she spotted her fellow flight attendant. “Please tell me you have some headache pills.”
Amy turned to her and sighed, shaking her head. “Of course I do, but you should know better than to party the night before a cross-country flight.”
Leslie rolled her eyes. “What else am I supposed to do? Visit museums?” She let out a dramatic sigh. “At least partying keeps me distracted.”
Amy nudged her playfully. “One day, everything will work out for you, Leslie,” she said. “Just have faith.”
The two women boarded the plane and quickly got to work, preparing for passengers to board, performing the safety demonstration, and ensuring everyone was settled. Once everything was in order, Leslie sneaked off to the galley and swallowed her headache pills.
“I wonder if Amy will mind if I rest in the crew quarters for a bit,” she mumbled to herself. She was about to go ask her colleague when she heard a strange sound. She paused, listening carefully. The noise had been soft—almost like a whimper—but it vanished as quickly as it came.
Leslie shook her head. Maybe Amy was right. Maybe she did party too much. She had already planned to hit more clubs once they landed in L.A., but perhaps skipping a few wouldn’t be a bad idea.
As she walked past the bathroom door, she heard it again—a soft, high-pitched sound. A cat? No, that wasn’t possible. It had to be a child crying.
Frowning, Leslie knocked on the door. “Hello?” she called. No answer.
Cautiously, she pushed the door open and peeked inside. The sight made her gasp, and before she could stop herself, she let out a small scream.
Curled up on the floor, shivering and sniffling, was a young boy. His eyes were red and filled with tears as he looked up at her.
Leslie took a deep breath and placed a hand on her chest. “Don’t do that! You scared me half to death.”
The boy hugged his knees, fresh tears rolling down his cheeks.
Leslie softened. “Hey, it’s okay. I didn’t mean to yell,” she said gently, crouching down. “I’m Leslie. What’s your name?”
The boy wiped his nose on his sleeve. “Ben.”
Leslie helped him up and led him to one of the crew jump seats. She checked the passenger list, expecting to find his name—but it wasn’t there.
Her stomach twisted. “Ben, sweetie, are you lost? Where’s your family?”
Ben clutched a brown paper bag to his chest, his tiny fingers gripping it tightly. The sight of it made Leslie uneasy. She had heard too many horror stories about people sneaking dangerous substances onto flights.
“What’s in the bag, Ben?” she asked carefully.
The boy sniffled. “It’s Granny’s medicine. She’s going to die without it… and it’ll be all my fault.”
Leslie’s heart clenched. Over the next few hours, she coaxed the story out of him. Ben came from a big family where his older brothers were always the center of attention. They played sports, got into trouble, and received praise. Ben, however, loved science. He wanted to find a cure for all diseases, but instead of praise, he got scolded for his messy experiments.
“I just wanted Mom to look at me the way she looks at them,” he whispered. “With love. With pride.”
When his grandmother fell sick, the family planned to visit her in Seattle with her medicine. But Ben got separated from his family at the airport. He saw a woman who looked like his mom and followed her onto the plane—only to realize too late that she was a stranger.
“I wanted to be the hero,” Ben said, his voice breaking. “But now I’m the villain. Granny’s going to die because of me.”
By the time the plane landed in L.A., Leslie had alerted the authorities. She felt sorry for Ben but was ready to move on. But then she got shocking news—the airline had arranged for her to take care of Ben overnight until they could fly him home.
Leslie stared at the boy. “This can’t be happening,” she muttered. Her plans for a fun night out were completely ruined.
She texted Amy and Brandon, hoping one of them would babysit. No luck. She even thought about hiring a sitter, but she couldn’t afford it. She needed every penny to send home.
That evening, they shared a quiet pizza dinner in her hotel room. Then her phone rang.
“Hello?”
Her mother’s voice trembled on the other end. “Leslie… it’s Joe. He’s sick.”
Leslie’s blood turned cold. “What? But he was fine the last time we talked! Did you take him to the doctor?”
“Yes,” her mother replied, voice thick with worry. “They referred us to a specialist. They mentioned a genetic disease. You might need to come in for tests too.”
Leslie’s heart pounded. “Whatever it takes,” she whispered. “I’ll do anything to help him.”
As soon as she hung up, Leslie broke down in sobs. She longed to hold her son, to kiss his curly hair and tell him everything would be okay. But she had been away for over a month, and now, her baby was sick and she wasn’t there.
Ben hesitantly approached. “Miss Leslie?” He held out his precious bag of medicine. “I think you should take these for your Joe.”
Leslie’s breath hitched. Tears welled in her eyes. “Oh, Ben…”
She wiped her tears and made a decision. “I have a better idea. I’m getting you to your granny in Seattle, and then I’m going home to my son.”
Leslie paid for Ben’s ticket herself and arranged for leave. When they landed, his family swarmed him with hugs and kisses, his mother sobbing as she promised to never ignore him again.
Leslie’s own reunion was different. Her son was frail, his skin pale. She curled up beside him that night, breathing in the coconut scent of his hair, and whispered, “I’ll fix this, baby. I promise.”
But things only got worse. The specialist had no answers, and Joe grew weaker. Leslie’s savings drained fast. The airline refused to pay her for extra time off. She even considered finding a new job.
Then, one evening, there was a knock at the door.
When she opened it, her jaw dropped. “Ben?”
The boy grinned up at her, flanked by his family. He handed her an envelope.
Leslie opened it and gasped. “This is over a hundred thousand dollars! I can’t accept this!”
Ben’s mother stepped forward, tears in her eyes. “We started a fundraiser for my mom, but… she passed away. We want Joe to have the money instead.”
Leslie clutched the check to her chest, sobbing. “Thank you. This is the greatest gift I’ve ever received. I only hope it’s enough.”
Ben hugged her. “It will be! And when Joe gets better, I’m coming back to play with him!”
A month later, Joe was running around again, laughing and strong. As Leslie watched him play, she looked up at a plane soaring above and smiled. She knew exactly how to repay Ben’s family.
The next day, she made some calls. Soon after, Ben’s family received lifetime flight discounts from her airline.
Because sometimes, kindness deserves kindness in return.
