A homeless man asked me for coffee on his birthday -hours later, he was sitting next to me in first class

When the homeless man who asked for coffee at the café at the airport sat next to Jimmy in first class, it raised a lot of questions. If he had money for an expensive plane ticket, why would he ask for something that only cost a couple of dollars?

Jimmy was a seemingly ordinary guy next door, but his heart was one of gold.

When he met Kathy, he knew she was the one the moment he laid eyes on her. When he popped the question just a month later, his friends called him crazy. “You are rushing things, you don’t even know her well,” they’d say. But Jimmy’s heart said otherwise.

That day, he was about to meet Kathy’s parents for the first time. Her words and “warnings” about her stern and serious father only added to the nervousness Jimmy felt.

As he was waiting for his flight, he decided to have some coffee at the airport’s café and get a bit distracted from the thoughts of what was awaiting him.

Jimmy was enjoying the calm atmosphere when he noticed a man wearing worn clothes entering the place. He went from table to table, asking from something, but every person at the coffee shop either avoided eye contact or shook their heads.

Finally, the homeless man approached Jimmy and asked him for coffee.

Jimmy hesitated before agreeing. “Sure, what would you want?” he asked.

“I’d have Jamaican Blue Mountain,” he said, almost sheepishly. “I’ve heard it’s really good.”

I smiled, because it was the priciest item on the menu. “Why that one?” Jimmy asked.

The homeless man replied that he asked for that particular brand of coffee because he had heard it was the best one, and since it was his birthday that day, why not there and then.

Jimmy ordered the coffee along with a slice of cake. He thought to himself, “What’s a birthday without a cake.”

He placed it on his table and told the homeless man to join him.

The man shared his life story, and Jimmy loved their conversation.

Before Jimmy left, he handed the homeless man $100. He didn’t want to accept it, but Jimmy insisted. “Consider this a gift from me for your birthday,” Jimmy said, “and have a good one.”

Once he boarded the plane, the nervousness of meeting Kathy’s family suddenly returned. Jimmy couldn’t help but wonder if his future mother and father-in-law would accept him. He cared for Kathy so much that he truly wanted to make an impression.

As he was sitting next to the window, someone approached him and said, “Mind if I join you?”

Jimmy looked at the man and his heart started racing. It was the homeless man who asked for coffee just an hour ago. But this time, his hair was neatly combed and he wore an expensive suit.

“What is going on?” Jimmy asked, confused.

“Let me introduce myself again,” the man said, “I’m David, Kathy’s father.”

“What?” Jimmy asked. “You are the man I’m flying to meet?”

“Yes,” David said. “My daughter is my world, so I didn’t want to hear your rehearsed answers, I wanted to see what kind of a person you are when nobody’s watching.”

As David smiled, he added, “By the way, Jimmy, you passed the test.”

“A test?” Jimmy mumbled. “So this was a test?”

“Yes, and now I want to see how you act around my family.”

When Jimmy arrived at Kathy’s parents’ place, he was welcomed by her mother and her siblings. They were easy-going people who made Jimmy feel welcomed.