I searched everywhere—every seat, the aisle, the bathroom, even under the seats.
Nothing.
He was nowhere.
Mervyn had vanished again.
"Flight attendant! Flight attendant!"
I called out frantically. Cecily rushed over immediately. "What's wrong?"
I pointed at Mervyn's seat, my voice trembling.
"My boyfriend is gone!"
"He was right here during the turbulence, but the moment the lights went out, he disappeared!"
Cecily frowned, glancing at the empty seat with a puzzled expression.
"Ma'am, are you sure you're not mistaken? We only saw you board alone. We never saw any boyfriend."
Again.
That same blank, confused look.
That same identical answer.
My heart pounded. I pulled out my phone and started scrolling through my photos, my voice rising.
"How could you not have seen my boyfriend? You just took a photo with him—"
The words died in my throat.
The photo—the one Mervyn and I had just taken with Cecily—was gone.
And it wasn't just that one. The grid of photos I'd posted to my social media, the messages and pictures I'd sent to my family group chat—all of it had vanished.
What was happening?
"Ma'am, I don't know what photo you're talking about, but I really haven't seen this boyfriend of yours." Cecily's tone was patient but firm. "The plane is currently in flight. Please return to your seat and fasten your seatbelt."
I didn't move. Instead, I turned to Stuart, desperate for confirmation.
"Sir, you saw my boyfriend just now, didn't you? You said he was handsome. You said my parents would definitely approve of him."
Stuart looked up at me, his face a mask of bewilderment.
"Young lady, what are you talking about? When did I ever compliment your boyfriend? I've never even seen him." He gestured at the seat beside me. "From the moment we boarded, you've been sitting here alone. That seat has been empty the entire time. No one's sat there."
His tone was so matter-of-fact, so utterly certain.
And that certainty made everything feel more wrong.
"That's impossible," I insisted. "You complimented him yourself. My boyfriend has been with me this whole time—you couldn't have missed him."
The other passengers began to stare, their gazes sharp with suspicion.
"Miss, I remember you boarding alone too."
"That seat next to you has been empty since takeoff. What boyfriend?"
"Maybe the turbulence scared you? Could you be... confused? Seeing things?"
I looked at all those doubting eyes and felt my sanity slipping.
"You all clapped for us! You congratulated us! You wished us a lifetime of happiness together!"
"Don't you remember?!"
One by one, they shook their heads, their expressions blank.
"Congratulations? No, nothing like that."
"It's been quiet this whole flight. Nobody said anything about blessings."
"Miss, you don't look well. Maybe you should sit down and rest."
Their voices overlapped, casual and calm, their eyes clear and guileless.
As if the applause, the well-wishes, the celebration of my engagement to Mervyn—none of it had ever happened.
But how could that be?
I remembered every moment. Every detail. I couldn't have imagined it.
A living, breathing person doesn't just vanish at thirty thousand feet.
So why was everyone saying the same thing?
Why did they all insist they'd never seen him?
