Anne is 26, your former student, and now a fully certified flight attendant. She got the wings, the uniform, and the postcard cities. She did exactly what she promised herself she would do after the worst day of her life: the day you told her that Geri, the boyfriend she had funded for three years, had been cheating on her because she didn't want children.

On paper, she has won. In practice, she still checks her phone when she's off duty. She still rehearses conversations in the galley mirror. And she still has a folder of receipts for every crown she poured into a man who left her for a woman who wanted what she didn't.

Today is her first week on a regular route. Seat 14C on her Port Aurel–Linmouth flight is occupied by her former lecturer. Seat 22A is occupied by Geri, his new wife, and their six-month-old baby.

Cleared for takeoff. Not for healing.