Locked into the window seat from Spain to Germany, Fanny Gagnon O’Donnell tried to be kind. The first time her seatmate leaned all the way across her body to photograph the clouds, she let it slide. Then he did it again. And again. She shut the shade. He tapped her shoulder, asking her to reopen it so he could keep filming the sky. Her quiet discomfort turned into a viral flashpoint when she posted the footage to TikTok, where nearly five million viewers projected their own anxieties about flying, consent and “being polite” onto those few inches of stolen arm space.
Commenters split: some furious on her behalf, others pleading that maybe it was his first time in the air. An etiquette expert later praised Fanny’s patience, but reminded travelers that courtesy cuts both ways. You can be compassionate and still say, clearly, “This is my space. Please stop.”
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