***
This happened to me when I was nineteen years old, while on a gruelling fourteen hour flight to London. I don’t recall what the in-flight movie was, but I remember not being particularly interested by it — it was something I dismissed as being *too childish*, likely. For all I knew at the time, I had a long and extra boring flight ahead of me. *(Reminder: At this time, phones weren’t the all-encompassing time-wasters they are now-a-days.)*
Instead of being with my family, I ended up sat beside a stranger for the duration of the flight, right at the very back of the plane. I don’t remember why this was; I suppose it doesn’t matter now. Point being, that was a first time for me. I’d never sat beside a stranger on an airplane flight before, although I’d flown many times. As a shy kid, these types of things can be intimidating. I sensed that there was some sort of *adult etiquette* which I was unaware of and failing to uphold. *Was I was meant to acknowledge their presence after take-off, maybe attempt small talk? Or should I just stare forward for the whole flight, pretending the seat beside me was empty?*