‘I realised my feelings too late’: Vietnam woman, 29, hopes to find kind S'porean man she met on flight to Taiwan

A Vietnamese student in Taipei is hoping to reconnect with a Singaporean man who helped her when she felt unwell on a Scoot flight, after regretting not exchanging contact details with him.

The woman, who gave her name as Mei Ling, told Mothership that she had travelled to Singapore for a concert and was returning to Taipei alone on Oct. 3.

Nearly a month later, she is still thinking about her seatmate and wondering whether he felt the same connection she did.

The man offered his jacket, medicine and water

Mei Ling, 29, said she was seated in 26E on Scoot flight TR872 from Singapore to Taipei. The man was beside her in 26F.

The flight was scheduled to depart Singapore at 12:25pm and arrive in Taipei at 5:10pm.

Mei Ling said she had trouble sleeping and felt a little motion sick during the flight.

About halfway through the journey, her seatmate noticed that she seemed uncomfortable and asked: “Everything is okay?”

He continued checking on her, offered her his jacket when he thought she might be cold, and gave her headache medicine. He also bought her water to take it with.

Mei Ling said the man's willingness to lend her his jacket was particularly touching because she noticed he was cold himself: "What touched me even more was that you seemed cold yourself. I noticed you sniffing repeatedly, yet you were still willing to share your jacket with me."

“You were a stranger, but for a little while, you made me feel as though I wasn’t alone,” she wrote in her appeal.

Did not exchange names or contact details

Mei Ling said the man first spoke to her in English. As she was not confident in the language, she replied in Chinese, and he tried to communicate with her in Chinese instead, although she described his Chinese as not very fluent.

When asked whether he was Chinese, the man said he was Singaporean.

That was essentially all she learnt about him. They did not exchange names or contact details.

She described him as wearing glasses, dressed entirely in black and travelling alone with a backpack. She estimated that he was in his twenties, but did not confirm his age.

Mei Ling said she had initially been guarded because she was unsure of his intentions.

“At the time, I thought we would only meet once, so I didn’t ask more questions,” she told Mothership.

Afterwards, she regretted not getting to know him better.

Saw him again on the airport train

When the plane landed, Mei Ling said she remained unsure whether to make an effort to stay in touch.

She thanked him and returned his jacket, but they parted without exchanging contact details.

There was, however, another opportunity.

Mei Ling said she saw him again on the train from the airport to Taipei, but hesitated to approach him.

“I didn’t realise at the time that missing an opportunity could mean missing it forever,” she said.

Looking back, she wished she had been less guarded and more courageous.

Hopes to find out whether the feeling was mutual

Mei Ling said she wants to meet him again to thank him properly and find out whether he felt a connection too.

“If he tells me that he helped me on the plane because he felt something more than just being a kind stranger, then I would like to have the chance to know him better and thank him properly,” she said.

“But if he tells me that it was only the kindness of a stranger, I will also be okay with that and let it go without another regret.”

She said she had tried unsuccessfully to find him through the airline.

“This is probably my last attempt and a little bit of hope,” she said.

If the man sees the appeal, Mei Ling hopes he will feel comfortable getting in touch, without any pressure.

He can contact her by email at [email protected].

“I may regret not knowing the answer, but I won’t regret trying to find him because I know I did my best,” she said.

“Whatever the answer is, I will accept it.”