There are two distinct types of people at the airport. You have the people who breeze through security with their shoes perfectly tied, and you have the people sweating profusely while unpacking three laptops and a bag of oversized liquids. Airport security is a notoriously stressful experience for everyone involved. But one traveler on Reddit recently shared a hilarious story about a massive relationship fight caused entirely by the TSA security line.
The Original Poster and their girlfriend have been together for four solid years. They are a jet setting couple who travel a few times a year for both work and vacation. Because they are financially savvy adults, both partners actually carry credit cards that completely cover the cost of enrolling in TSA PreCheck and Clear.
Since the Original Poster travels constantly for work, they immediately took advantage of the massive credit card perk. They enrolled in both fast track programs to make their life significantly easier. The girlfriend, however, firmly decided that the application requirements were simply too annoying and confusing to deal with. She flat out refused to go through the easy enrollment process despite being a very smart and capable person.
When the couple travels together, the Original Poster is usually the one booking all the trips and managing the logistics. Because they fly out of the same terminal so frequently, they even have a friendly rapport with the local TSA agents. They always input their trusted traveler number to ensure they get that highly coveted PreCheck stamp on their boarding pass before arriving at the airport.
The ultimate travel drama kicked off four years ago during their very first trip as a couple. They arrived at the chaotic security checkpoint, and the Original Poster asked a very simple question. They politely asked the girlfriend if it was okay if they went through the blazing fast PreCheck line while she waited in the regular security line.
The girlfriend looked at her partner and explicitly said yes. Taking her at her word, the Original Poster zipped through the fast lane with their shoes securely on their feet and their laptop safely inside their bag. Because the regular line was moving at a glacial pace, the loving partner even took the extra time to grab two coffees before waiting patiently on the other side of the metal detectors.
When the girlfriend finally emerged from the security gauntlet, she was absolutely furious. She accused her partner of completely abandoning her at the checkpoint. She aggressively claimed she only said yes because the question caught her totally off guard, and she was deeply shocked that they would even consider leaving her behind in the slow lane.
Ever since that fateful day four years ago, the Original Poster has been serving a severe and ongoing punishment. Whenever they fly together, the partner who actually took the time to register for PreCheck is strictly forbidden from using it. They are forcefully dragged into the agonizing regular security line just so the girlfriend does not have to stand by herself for fifteen minutes.
The situation has reached peak awkwardness because the friendly TSA agents constantly recognize the Original Poster. The agents loudly point out that the traveler has PreCheck and can easily skip the massive line. The poor Original Poster then has to stand right in front of their angry girlfriend and awkwardly explain why they are not allowed to use their own travel benefits.
Sometimes the TSA agents will even make blunt comments about how unfair the dynamic is, which understandably upsets the girlfriend even more. On one highly amusing occasion, the regular line was so unacceptably long that the TSA agents actually forced the Original Poster to use the PreCheck lane against their will. Predictably, the girlfriend was absolutely miserable about that logical outcome too.
The internet entirely agrees with the original poster on this massive travel debate. You cannot refuse a free travel perk just because you are too lazy to fill out a simple online application, and then demand your partner suffer in solidarity. Making your significant other take off their shoes just so you feel better about your own poor planning is the exact definition of petty behavior. Do you think couples should split up at airport security? Let us know your personal travel rules in the comments below!