Gracie Burton flew to Orlando to see her fiancé, Mark, who moved there several months earlier. However, her entire world was shaken when she arrived at the airport, and Mark was there with an older woman. Gracie never expected karma to play with her that way.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please be seated. Our flight is ready for departure,” Gracie heard one of the flight attendants echo through the PA system, so she arranged her seatbelt and thought about putting her headphones on. However, the older woman sitting next to her interrupted her.
“Departures are always the worst part of flights, aren’t they?” the lady commented, looking at Gracie and expecting an answer.
“Yeah, they can be scary at first,” she replied, nodding her head and grinning awkwardly.
Mark was not alone, and Gracie could almost hear the sound of tires screeching as she stopped in her tracks.
“This is a good airline, though,” the older woman continued.
“Ah, sure. I guess,” Gracie said politely.
“I don’t like traveling much, but I’m going to visit someone important. I haven’t seen him in a while, and he invited me especially, so I have to go, you know?” the older woman shared.
“Yeah, sure,” Gracie replied, not knowing what else to say. Clearly, the older lady wanted to talk through this. Gracie knew some people felt better during tense situations if they thought about something else. But she had never been the most talkative person in the world. In fact, she never gave a great first impression.
“I hate flying for so long, but I also don’t like connecting flights either, so it was this one-stop ticket to Orlando, and three hours is too long. Have you ever been in longer flights?”
“Uhhh, well, I went to Europe years ago, so yeah,” Gracie answered as the plane finally started moving and gathering speed. Luckily, this distracted the older woman for a while.
Gracie grabbed her phone and looked at her photo gallery. She couldn’t search the internet as it was on airplane mode for safety.
She clicked on a picture of her and Mark at JFK months ago. He had been offered a fantastic new work opportunity and couldn’t turn it down. Gracie would be moving with him in a few more months when her current contract at work ended, and they were working hard to maintain their relationship through the distance. But it was hard.
Swiping through the images calmed her. Then their engagement photo came up. It was the sweetest moment ever. Mark had proposed during a beautiful picnic at Central Park, and she couldn’t imagine marrying anyone more romantic.
Without her noticing, the plane had stabilized, and the older woman suddenly tapped her shoulder. “What are you looking at?”
“Hmmm,” she started, not really wanting to answer that question. Her private life was hers alone. But she didn’t want to be rude to the older woman. “This is my fiancé. I’m going to see him in Orlando.”
“Aww, that’s sweet. I love to see young people planning their futures. Are you going to have kids?”
Gracie finally frowned at that question. What made people think it was alright to ask something so private and personal? she thought. She wanted to end the conversation immediately, but instead, she said, “Maybe, I don’t know.”
“Of course, there are many things to think of right now when it comes to having kids. It’s not the same as it was when I was younger. Everyone had kids after getting married. It was the only choice. Now there’s inflation and climate change affecting this decision. Although, if you want my opinion….”
I don’t.
“… You really should have them. There’s nothing like raising kids, and then, grandkids, now that’s even better,” the older woman continued. “So, promise you’ll think about it.”
Who does this woman think she is to speak to me this way? Do I look like I want to discuss my reproductive choices? This is ridiculous, Gracie thought and wanted to say something snarky, but she just didn’t say anything. However, her silence was not enough to deter the older woman.
“I hope you’re not one of those career ladies who only think about their job. That’s not good. Having a career is fine, but family has to come first. Tending to your husband and kids. Cooking…” the lady continued, and finally, Gracie started to lose her patience.
She could tolerate a lot, but this blatant lecture about old-school gender roles was a little much to her liking, and it was even worse coming from a complete stranger.
“So, you think that women shouldn’t be as driven as men and focus on being housewives?” Gracie finally snapped but still kept her voice low.
“No, no. But still, at the end of the day, career is not that important. Money comes and goes. God will always provide. But building a good family is something you can’t have later. You need to start it quickly. And trust me, young lady, once you do, you’ll realize that a job means nothing next to it.”
The vein on Gracie’s forehead started to pound. She was sure her face was beet red from anger. “Whatever I choose, it’s my choice, and it should be respected. My fiancé has to understand that,” she replied slowly and carefully.
“Oh, pish-posh. Most men say they are fine having a career-driven wife, but that’s not true at all. Deep down, they want a woman to stay at home, care for the house and kids, and generally be his support system.”
“My fiancé is not like that. He loves me for me. If we do have kids, he might become a househusband!” she exclaimed, a bit too loudly.
Of course, she was lying. She and Mark worked because they were both ambitious and driven in their careers. Neither would stay home for these hypothetical kids.
“That’s preposterous! You can’t do that!” the older lady countered, and Gracie’s eyebrows almost popped off her head.
“What? That’s not your problem, lady. Stop talking to me for the rest of the flight. I don’t tolerate that kind of talk. This is not the 1950s. Get with the times!” Gracie retorted, flinching at what she knew would sound like insults to the older woman, but she had had enough.
The old lady wanted to answer, and she was angry too for some insane reason that Gracie couldn’t understand. But suddenly, she started coughing and coughing. And it got so bad that Gracie stood to call for the flight attendant, who made the older lady stand and come with her.
Gracie worried their fight had impacted the older woman’s health, but it wasn’t her fault. She simply got tired of the stranger’s lectures. Still, I hope she’ll be alright, she thought. At some point, she asked the flight attendant about her.
“Oh, I sat her in an empty seat in first class. She’s fine and sleeping now,” the kind woman answered before she resumed her duties.
Gracie breathed profoundly and felt better. She now had more room and no one to talk her ear off for the rest of the flight.
She arrived at MCO right on time and checked her phone. Mark had sent her a message.
“I’m waiting for you right outside. I also have a surprise for you,” he wrote cryptically but sent a smiley-face emoji, which made Gracie smile. He always had surprises in store, and she couldn’t wait to see him.
Her bag took forever to come out. It felt like almost everyone else on her flight had already left by the time she saw her luggage. She was so anxious to see Mark already. She rushed through the rest of the airport protocol and went through the arrival door, looking back and forth for her fiancé.
At last, she spotted him, waving his hand and smiling widely at her. It was him. The love of his life. Her beautiful Mark, who she was sure would never make her become a housewife. Jeez, I have to forget about that old lady’s words.
But Mark was not alone, and Gracie could almost hear the sound of tires screeching as she stopped in her tracks. He was standing next to the older woman from the plane. She saw him put his hand on the woman’s shoulder and point at Gracie.
Mark’s face registered happiness. She had to be someone important to him. She was the surprise.
Gracie started walking, feeling like she was walking to the final judgment in hell. She couldn’t believe this coincidence.
“Gracie! I want to introduce you to the wonderful woman who raised me, my grandma Barbara Rodkin. Although I call her Nana,” her fiancé said, and Gracie was sweating in shame. But she extended her hand to the elderly woman.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Mrs. Rodkin. I’m Gracie Burton,” she said, and the older woman’s eyes squinted for a second. Gracie braced for the coming scolding. The tension was thick in the air, but for some unexplainable reason, Mark didn’t notice.
The moment seemed like forever, but it was only a few seconds before Barbara extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, darling,” she said with a smile.
Mark guided them towards his car at the parking, and Gracie let Barbara have the front seat. Throughout the entire ride, she wondered how to apologize to Barbara for her words and for causing her coughing attack on the flight. She thought it was odd that she hadn’t said anything to Mark.
As they got closer to Mark’s place, she thought about something else. She knew Mark had been raised by his grandmother, as his parents died when he was 10. But from the stories he told her, Barbara had not been a housewife at all. She did not stay home to raise kids and never married Mark’s grandfather. Her lecture on the plane didn’t make any sense. Had she changed her mind in old age?
Finally, they arrived at Mark’s condo, and he got their bags. They were silent through the elevator ride and settled into his place quickly.
“I’m going to take a shower, honey. Can you entertain my grandmother for a few minutes?” Mark asked after he gave them a tour of the house and served them some drinks.
“Sure,” she said, nodding too quickly.
When Mark left, Gracie turned and saw Barbara sitting on the sofa. Her face was turned to the window. She suddenly looked back at Gracie, who couldn’t take it anymore. She had to talk about the elephant in the room, and there was only one way to do it.
She approached the older woman and dropped to her knees with her head down in shame. “Mrs. Rodkin, I had no idea you were Mark’s grandmother. I’m so sorry! I can’t believe I spoke to anyone that way. I should’ve respected your opinions. And I caused your coughing fit. Please, forgive me!” Gracie begged.
“Oh, honey, stand up,” the older woman said, shocking Gracie, who looked up at her. “You don’t need to apologize at all.”
“What?”
“I did that on purpose,” Barbara revealed and suddenly giggled, then she patted the couch. “Come, sit with me.”
Gracie sat on the couch, confused. “What do you mean on purpose?”
“I saw you looking at your pictures with Mark on your phone. I didn’t know who you were at first, but then I saw the photos and thought… about getting to know you better,” Barbara began, flashing a cheeky smile.
“So, it was a test?”
“It wasn’t really. It just turned out that way in the end,” the older woman explained. “I hate women with no ambition. I know I shouldn’t judge, but I do. I was a working woman, even when I had to raise a child again at my older age, and I want Mark to marry someone who wants a future for herself, not to live off him. And you, darling, you passed the test and checked all the boxes. You are opinionated, passionate, and a little forceful. You won’t let others trample on you and what you want. I respect that. I love that. So, I have to apologize too for being so harsh. Oh, and the coughing fit, well, that was unexpected.”
Finally, Gracie’s whole body relaxed, and she laughed. “Oh my god. But you are alright? I was worried, but the flight attendant told me you were fine.”
“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just a cough. When you’re older, everything gets worse, and more people worry. But it was nothing. Of course, I didn’t want to say anything. I was bumped up to first class, so I should even thank you for that,” Barbara added, and they both laughed.
The rest of their stay was fantastic. They never told Mark about their first official meeting. It was their secret.
Months later, Gracie moved permanently to Orlando, and they had their wedding. Barbara proudly walked her grandson down the aisle and watched as he married a woman she approved of wholeheartedly.