But They Still Disagreed

The mother admitted:

“If nobody else had moved, I still would’ve thought you should have.”

Rachel replied:

“And I still would’ve thought the airline should’ve figured something else out.”

Neither changed the other’s mind.

And maybe that was the point.

The mother had not intentionally booked separate seats.

Rachel had not taken a seat belonging to somebody else.

The airline’s rebooking system created the conflict.

But once the conflict existed, individual passengers were left to decide who should absorb the inconvenience.

After Landing, The Argument Started Again

Passengers were standing in the aisle waiting for the doors to open.

The man from across the aisle joked:

“Well, at least everyone survived the Great Seat Crisis.”

Several people laughed.

Then another passenger said:

“I still think you should’ve just switched.”

Rachel turned around.

Before she could answer, the college student who had helped solve the seating problem spoke up.

“Why didn’t you switch?”

The passenger looked confused.

“What?”

“You said she should’ve switched. Why didn’t you?”

“I wasn’t sitting near them.”

The student smiled.

“Exactly.”

A few passengers laughed.

Others didn’t.