Thank you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

You don’t know me. You couldn’t have known that my train was delayed by nearly 40 minutes; you couldn’t have known that I sprinted through the airport to get to the check-in desk. You didn’t see the airline employees inform me that the plane had already departed, and you didn’t see me sink to the ground and break down. You didn’t hear them tell me I’d have to book a new ticket, as they wouldn’t change one for a missed flight — well over £100, split between my boyfriend and I to get me home, just gone.

You couldn’t possibly have known how lost, alone, and utterly devastated I felt in that moment.

You did see the airline employees leave, and you saw me stay. You walked over, you made conversation. You gave me a hug, and you asked if…