A woman called the flight attendant and complained about me, but just a few minutes later, she deeply regretted her actions 

I knew I didn’t look great. Fever, chills, dry cough — it all hit me right before the flight. But canceling the trip wasn’t an option: tickets were bought, hotel paid for, meetings scheduled. I had no choice but to pull myself together and get on the plane.

I quietly took my seat by the window, trying not to disturb anyone. I pulled out my water bottle, placed some tissues nearby, and prepared to spend the next few hours as peacefully as possible.

But only ten minutes after takeoff, an angry voice rang out in the cabin:

— “This is unbearable! He’s coughing constantly! I don’t have to put up with this!”

A woman around fifty, sitting across the aisle, turned her whole body toward me and began shouting:

— “Are you contagious? Why did you even get on this flight?!”

I tried to reply calmly:

— “I’m sorry. I’ll try to be quieter. I’ll take some medicine. You can wear headphones if the sound bothers you…”

— “I’m not putting anything on! This is my vacation, and you’re ruining it!” — she shrieked, drawing the attention of everyone on board.

A minute later, she hit the call button.

A young flight attendant approached with a strained smile:

— “Good afternoon, is something wrong?”

The woman nearly jumped out of her seat:

— “He’s coughing! He’s sick! You have to do something! I paid for my ticket, by the way!”

The flight attendant nodded politely and walked off. She returned a few minutes later, this time with a serious look. Clearly, she had spoken to the captain. And that’s when the woman began to regret calling her in the first place.  Continued in the first comment 

— “Since we can’t compromise flight safety and the passenger isn’t feeling well, we’d like to resolve this in the most comfortable way for everyone… You can simply change seats.”

The woman instantly turned red and shouted:

— “I’m not moving because of him! I paid for this seat!”

The flight attendant looked at me and said calmly:

— “We can move you if you’re okay with it. There’s a free seat available…”

— “Of course, move me! I don’t want to listen to this for the whole flight!” — the woman beamed with satisfaction.

I nodded:

— “Alright. If it helps, I don’t mind.”

— “Perfect,” the flight attendant said. “The only free seat is in business class. There, you can relax. Dinner and drinks will be served. Please follow me.”

I got up, and for a few seconds, there was complete silence in the cabin.

As I walked past the woman, I caught a glimpse of her face — it first froze, then twisted with anger and jealousy. She muttered something, but no one was listening anymore.

I settled into a wide, comfortable seat, received a blanket, hot tea with honey, and later a delicious dinner. A few hours of peace and comfort lay ahead.