A strange noise from the bathroom on a nationwide flight startles flight attendant Leslie. She doesn’t realize that the child inside will change her life forever.

Leslie massaged her forehead with one hand as she walked toward her aircraft. Her head ached from a wild night out at one of Atlanta’s top clubs.

“Amy!” Leslie called when she spotted her fellow flight attendant. “Do you have any pain relievers?”

Amy glanced at Leslie and rolled her eyes. “Of course I do, but you should know better than to party the night before a long flight.”

“What else am I supposed to do, visit museums?” Leslie sighed. “At least partying keeps my mind off things.”

Amy gave Leslie a friendly nudge, and the two entered the plane together.

“One day, everything will work out for you, Leslie,” Amy said. “Just trust.”

Leslie and Amy quickly started getting the plane ready for takeoff, including safety instructions and helping passengers settle. Later, Leslie took her headache pills in the galley.

“I wonder if Amy would mind if I rested in the crew quarters,” Leslie thought. As she headed to talk to her colleague, a strange noise made her stop.

She paused, listening carefully. After a moment, she shrugged it off, thinking she might have imagined it. Maybe her partying was catching up with her. She had plans to hit several clubs in L.A., but perhaps she’d skip some.

Passing the bathroom, she heard a high-pitched whimper again. There was no animal on the plane, so it must have been a crying child.

Leslie knocked on the door. When no response came, she opened it and peeked inside. She screamed.

Moments later, she realized the trembling figure she’d seen was a young boy. He had been crying and looked up at her with tear-streaked eyes.

“Don’t do that!” Leslie said, startled.

“What are you doing in here?”

Hugging his knees, the boy began to cry anew. Over her shock, Leslie felt sorry for him. She crouched down.

“I’m sorry I shouted,” Leslie said. “You scared me. I’m Leslie. What’s your name?”

The boy sniffed. “Ben.”

Leslie helped him to his feet. She allowed him to sit in a crew seat while she checked the passenger list for his name. It seemed like his first flight, and he appeared scared.

She frowned. She looked again, but couldn’t find his name on the list.

It had been ages since she comforted a child. She longed for her home, but now wasn’t the time. She sat beside Ben and touched his arm.

“Ben, are you lost? I can help if you tell me where your family is.”

Ben sobbed. He was clutching a paper bag to his chest. That made Leslie nervous because of stories about dangerous items brought onto planes.

“What’s in the bag, Ben?” Leslie asked.

“It’s Granny’s medicine,” he said. “Without it, she might die, and it’s all my fault!”

Over the next hours, Leslie got most of the story from Ben. He was the youngest in a big family. His older brothers liked sports and roughhousing. Benwanted to be a scientist.

His mother hadn’t liked the side effects from his experiments to cure diseases. He hoped to make her proud but had been told to stay in the corner instead.

“I just want her to look at me with the same pride she shows my brothers,” Ben sobbed. “That’s why I took Granny’s medicine.”

When his grandma got sick, they planned to visit her in Seattle and bring her medication. Ben got separated from his family at the airport. He rejoined his mother and followed her onto the plane.

“But she wasn’t my mom,” Ben cried. “Now I’m on the wrong plane. I wanted to be the hero delivering Granny her medicine, but now I’m the villain. She’ll die because of me.”

When the plane landed in Los Angeles, Leslie alerted authorities. She felt sorry for Ben but was ready to move forward. However, she was shocked to learn what arrangements the airline made for him.

She looked at the boy under her care and her hotel room. It wasn’t fair. She’d made plans to explore clubs, but now she had to babysit.

She texted colleagues for help but got no support. She even thought of hiring a babysitter but couldn’t afford it, needing to save money for her son.

While eating pizza, her phone rang. Her stomach sank at the caller’s words.

“My baby is sick?” Leslie asked her mother. “What happened? Wasn’t Joe fine last time? Did you see a doctor?”

“Yes,” her mother answered.

“They gave us a referral. We have an appointment soon. They mentioned a genetic illness and might want you to do tests since you’re his mother.”

Leslie replied, “Whatever it takes, I want Joe to get better.”

She ended the call and curled up, crying. She wished she could hug her son, smell his hair, and reassure him everything would be okay.

But Joe was far away. Leslie hadn’t gone home in over a month. Despite her attempts to forget her worries by partying, her heart still ached.

“Miss Leslie?” Ben approached her and gently touched her arm. “Maybe you should take these for your Joe.”

Leslie looked at the bag of medicine Ben offered, tears filling her eyes.

“If I can’t help my grandma, maybe I can help you,” Ben said. “Take these so Joe can stay healthy.”

“I have a better plan.” Leslie typed on her phone. “I’m going to get you to your grandma in Seattle. After that, I’m going home to Missoula to see my son.”

Leslie booked Benjamin a flight at her expense and organized time off to travel with him.

“I’m scared,” Ben said as they boarded. “What if Granny’s already gone because of my mistake? Mom won’t love me.”

Leslie gently tousled his hair.

“Your mom has always loved you, Ben, and she always will. That’s what parents do. I bet she’s worried sick and will be so happy to see you safe.”

When they arrived in Seattle, his family rushed to meet him, hugging him tight. Leslie watched as Ben’s mom kissed and promised never to ignore him again.

But her own family reunion was less joyful. She saw how pale and thin Joe had become since she last saw him. He felt fragile in her arms.

That night, Leslie stayed up talking to her mom about Joe’s tests. She felt overwhelmed, helpless, and guilty.

She sneaked into Joe’s room and lay beside him, smelling his soft hair. She promised to do everything possible to make him well again.

As days went by, Joe’s condition worsened. Doctors couldn’t identify the cause. He kept growing weaker.

Leslie tried to extend her leave, but the airline refused to pay her beyond her scheduled time. She struggled to cover medical bills with her mother’s limited income and her savings.

She considered finding a better-paying job but worried about money.

Just then, a knock at the door changed everything.

Leslie opened it and saw a familiar face.

“Ben?” she asked, noticing the family with him. “What’s going on?”

He handed her an envelope.

Inside was a check. Leslie’s jaw dropped at the amount.

“What’s this? I can’t take it,” she said.

“It’s over a hundred thousand dollars!”

The woman stepping forward was Ben’s mother. “We started a crowdfunding campaign for Granny’s treatment, but she… she passed away recently.”

Ben’s father came to hug his wife as she cried.

“We decided to give you the money for Joe,” Ben’s dad said. “We shared our plans online, and everything is legit.”

Leslie clutched the check, tears streaming. “Thank you all so much. This is the best gift I’ve ever received. I hope it’s enough.”

Ben ran up and hugged her legs.

“It will be enough,” he said confidently. “And someday, I’ll come back to play with Joe once he’s better.”

Leslie smiled and tousled Ben’s hair.

“You’re always welcome to visit.”

The check nearly covered what she needed. After many treatments, Joe started to recover.

A month later, he played happily with a neighbor’s dog. Leslie watched, thinking of how far he’d come.

“And it’s all because of Ben,” she whispered.

Just as she looked up at the sky to see a plane fly overhead, she decided how to thank Ben’s family.

She grabbed her phone and made some calls. The next day, she told Ben’s mother the airline was offering her family a lifetime discount on flights as a thank you.