Free Upside Down Inside Out by Monica McInerney

wouldn’t make it, I can’t tell you how glad I am to see you.’
    Behind the counter, the woman was ignoring her, tapping away at the keyboard, her long fingernails making rhythmic clicks against the plastic. ‘I’m sorry, madam, but that flight is fully booked.’
    Eva felt a cold rush down her spine. ‘I beg your pardon?’
    ‘There isn’t actually a seat available on that flight at the moment.’
    ‘Oh please, there must be. It wasn’t my fault the plane from Dublin was delayed. My ticket has been confirmed, there must be room for me.’
    Another clickety-click of fingertips on the keyboard. ‘I can get you from Singapore to Melbourne, it’s the London to Singapore leg that seems to be oversubscribed. You’re on a waiting list, there’s every chance you’ll get on.’
    Waiting list? Every chance? This was some start to her big adventure. She couldn’t even get out of Heathrow. Eva started to blame herself, thinking she should have got an earlier flight from Dublin. She shouldn’t have run with this crackpot idea in the first place. She should have stayed put in Ireland for her holidays. Kilkenny was supposed to be nice this time of year No, don’t think like that. Stand up for yourself. This problem with the seat isn’t your fault. You’ve paid for your ticket. Surely they can find room for you?
    Exactly. Eva had worked in the delicatessen long enough to know that politeness would get her much further than aggression. ‘I really do need to be on that plane to Australia tonight. And my luggage is already on its way through to Melbourne. Surely it
    would be far too inconvenient to unload it at this stage?’ The woman sighed, looked at the queue stretching behind Eva and called over to a young man in a suit passing behind the counter. ‘Ray, can you deal with this? A seat allocation situation.’ Eva flashed the young man the biggest smile she could muster, praying that her dimple had chosen this moment to appear. She needed all the help she could get. She’d even waggle her lovely eyebrows at him if she had to. The young man looked solemnly at her, then at her ticket and passport. ‘Miss Eva Kennedy, travelling from Dublin, is that right?’ He had an American accent. She nodded. ‘I’ll take over here, Janice.’ He moved to the neighbouring computer terminal, unattended at that moment. ‘Now, Miss Kennedy, let’s see what we can do here. I’m actually hoping to get over to Ireland for a long holiday next month, when my placement here finishes. My grandmother was from Tipperary and my great-grandfather on the other side was from Offaly, he came out to the States in the 1840s …’ Oh holy God, Eva thought, fighting a growing feeling of panic. Was this really the time to hear about his family tree? She smiled fixedly as he told her about his great-aunt Tilly who had traced all his ancestors several years ago. He was certainly very
    well informed. ‘It’s A Long Way To Tipperary’ started playing in her head.
    The young man finally finished the story of his family tree, clicked away at the keyboard then beamed at Eva. ‘Now, ma’am, you’ll need to be quick. Take this card and run as quickly as you can to that counter down there. Ignore any queues. Just give them this and tell them Ray said they should look after you.’
    She smiled in huge relief. ‘Thanks, Ray. And I hope you enjoy Ireland when you get there.’
    The other counter was halfway to the end of the departure hall. She was breathless by the time she got there. ‘Ray said …’
    The middle-aged woman listened to her explanation, took the card and tapped at a keyboard. ‘Yes, Miss Kennedy, we have managed to find you a seat. An upgrade. I’m sure you won’t mind. You’ll be travelling to Singapore business class this evening. Boarding through gate thirty-one at this moment. Have a good journey.’
     
    There must have been a terrible mistake, Joseph thought. They must have accidentally put him in the children’s seats.