She felt tears coming to her eyes and fought to hold them back. Alex nodded his head.
"Bad day?" He ventured. The plane banked sharply and both of them let out a gasp of surprise. The aircraft steadied again and they exchanged another smile.
"Something like that." She said. Alex drew a brilliant white handkerchief out of his pocket and offered it to her. She laughed again.
"You're kidding me, right?"
"Well, at least it put a smile on your face, right?"
"What are you, the last living gentleman in the United States of America?"
"Maybe. I hope not. Look, seriously, if you need it, take it. I always carry a spare and its brand new."
Melanie looked incredulous. The florid initials AD were in the corner. She smiled again and took it from him, then dabbed her eyes, and handed it back.
"Don't be silly." He said. "I can't possibly take it back; just use it until you need it."
"You really are a smooth one." She said. He smiled and held her gaze until she smiled again. Melanie didn't know what the gallant stranger was doing to her, but she liked it.
"So come on Melanie, tell me: What's wrong with you today? You never know, maybe I can help?"
"Do you always offer help to complete strangers?"
"Never." He said firmly. "But I've never met a complete stranger like you before."
He watched a slight blush come to her pretty face.
"You stop it now." She said. "Before I get the wrong idea."
"How do you know it would be the wrong idea?"
"Oh, you are good. Really good. Too good. Way too smooth for me."
"Look, why don't you just try me? It never hurts to share a burden."
"Okay." She sighed. "Have you got a million dollars?"
"Well, not on me." He laughed.
"I didn't think so."
"What do you need a million dollars for?"
"It's my mother. She's in a nursing home in Florida. But it turns out her care and medical bills have been unpaid for the last year and the debt has been mounting up and now we owe them nearly a million in total and on my salary as a flight attendant, that might as well be a billion dollars. If she can't pay $10,000 by the end of the month, they're going to evict her." Melanie began to tear up again.
"God, Melanie. I'm sorry to hear that. Isn't there anywhere your mother could stay?"
"She could stay with me, but she needs round-the-clock supervision and I'm hardly on the ground half the week with my schedule." She stopped abruptly. The seat belt sign had gone off. She released her buckle and stood up.