The Kicking Only Got Worse
At first, I tried to be patient. Children get restless on flights, and I did not want to make a scene before the plane had even properly settled. I smiled and asked the boy politely if he could stop kicking my seat. For a moment, he paused. I thought that would be the end of it. Then another kick landed harder than before, right into my lower back.
The kicks kept coming every few seconds. I tried putting in my earbuds, shifting forward, and focusing on anything else, but every thump pulled me back into irritation. Finally, I turned to his mother and asked if she could please tell him to stop. She barely looked at me before saying he was just a kid and I should let it go. Then she returned to her magazine as if the conversation was finished. That was when I realized the problem was not just the child. It was the adult who refused to care.
