“No boarding pass, no flight.”
The flight attendant’s assertion, delivered with a self-satisfied smirk, struck Cora like a heavy blow. The definitive statement, “No boarding pass, no flight,” reverberated in her ears, leaving her with a sinking sense of hopelessness. It seemed as though the flight attendant had been anticipating this moment with a sense of triumph, and her smug demeanor only compounded Cora’s distress.
In a last-ditch effort, Cora turned her pleading gaze toward the pilot, hoping against hope that he might still find a solution. However, the pilot’s helpless expression indicated that there was nothing further he could do. Cora’s sigh of resignation carried a blend of disappointment and gratitude for his earlier attempts to assist her. It was a moment of deep disillusionment as Cora grappled with the realization that her journey had been irreversibly derailed by the inexplicable disappearance of her boarding pass and the flight attendant’s unwavering stance.