Have you ever waited to get on a plane in an airport? The wait can be long and boring. And one of the things many people do is watch other people.

And sometimes you won’t believe what you see, as is the case in . . .

Oh, Baby!

     The sun shined through the large Sacramento Airport terminal window casting a glow upon the Gate 14 boarding area. The Arrival-Departure Board showed our flight being delayed forty-five minutes. Snow in Denver kept the incoming flight from arriving on time.

     Grace had been planning this trip to Las Vegas to celebrate my fiftieth birthday for months. I couldn’t wait any longer to get there. Antsy and bored, I wiggled around in my seat. I scanned the room and watched the security cameras mounted on the wall move back and forth. I opened my MacBook Air and searched the Internet for something of interest.

     Finding nothing that turned me on, I started looking at the other travelers. As my eyes perused them, I noticed something peculiar happening. I leaned over and poked Grace in the arm. She put down the book she was reading and glared at me.

     “What do you want, Harvey? You’re fidgeting is getting to me. Are you bored?” she moaned.

     “Well yeah, but . . .”

     “But what?”

     “Look over there.”

     “Over where?”

     “The seats in front of the window.”

     “Yeah, so what? All I see are two nice looking families. What’s your problem?”

     “The babies next to each other in their carriers.”

     “Okay, so there are two children next to each other. What are you trying to say, Harvey?”

     “Look more closely at them.”

     “Why? What am I supposed to see? Harvey, you’re trying my patience. Spit it out already.”

     “They seem to be talking to each other. And the way they’re moving their hands, I think they’re using sign language.”

     “My God, you are bored. What you’re saying is ridiculous. Babies always move their hands. And it may look as if they’re talking to each other, but all they’re doing is making weird sounds. Don’t you remember our kids at that age?”

     “Sure, but what they did wasn’t anything like what I saw those two doing. The boy seemed to be telling the girl something important and the girl responded in a way that showed she agreed with him.”

     “Oh, sure, he asked her out on a date and she accepted. How are you coming up with these preposterous observations?”

     “Grace, you’re making fun of me. You’re treating me as if I’m being a jerk. Don’t do that.”

     “Why not? That’s exactly what you’re acting like.”

     “Grace, look now! They’re staring directly into each other’s eyes. They’re planning something. This could be the real thing.”

     “Real thing? What real thing? You’re driving me crazy, Harvey.”

     “But you can’t blow this off. Maybe I should report it to airport security.”

     “Report what to security . . . two infants staring at one another? They’ll lock you up.”

     “But, but . . .”

     “No more buts. Just lean back and relax and leave me alone.”

     So I leaned back and tried to forget what I’d seen. There’s definitely something strange about the behavior of those two babies, I thought.  

     I glanced in their direction again. Oh, my. I couldn’t believe what was happening. An adult woman, probably the mother of one of the infants, stood pointing, with her mouth hanging open.

     To my amazement, one of the babies crawled with unbelievable speed away from the seating area. It looked like a boy. But how did he get out of the carrier and onto the floor?

     Then the other child, a girl, propped herself up and tumbled like a tiny acrobat from her carrier onto the ground. Seeing her companion about fifteen feet away, she scurried off after him.

     The second woman, amazed at what she’d witnessed, stood frozen and gaped in the direction the child had gone.

     Neither woman ran after the baby I believed was hers. This puzzled me. I leaned over to Grace and whispered, “Did you see that?”

     Grace again raised her head from her book. “Huh, what do you want now, Harvey?” 

     “Both babies are gone,” I mumbled.

     “Gone, where?”

     “I have no idea. They crawled away, as if off on a mission . . . the boy first, followed by the girl.”

     “Come on, Harvey, it’s your imagination playing tricks on you. See, both babies are still tucked into their carriers. They didn’t go anywhere.”

     “But those aren’t the same babies.”

     “How in the world do you know that?”

     “They’re so still. None of the animation I witnessed before. And if the babies didn’t run away, why did the women, probably their mothers, appear to be so upset?”

     “I don’t see upset mothers. The women are just standing and stretching their legs. This is all in your mind, Harvey. And I didn’t hear anything. The babies would have hurt themselves if they’d jumped out of their carriers onto the floor. At least they’d be screaming.”

     “Maybe you’re right.” I dropped the subject, but looked across the room again. Where were the mothers? I thought. Only two men, with their eyes glued to their iPhones, sat alongside the children. And they didn’t seem to care about the babies.

     “Harvey, why are you still staring at those kids? Let them be,” Grace moaned.

     “But the kids aren’t moving. Not even a little. That shouldn’t be.”

     “It’s none of your business, Harvey. Drop it, for God’s sake.”

     “I can’t. Hey, look! The men are getting up.”

     “So what? They’re probably going to join their wives.”

     “Yeah, maybe so. But why aren’t they taking the babies with them?”

     “What? They’re leaving without the babies? We’ve got to report this. Infants can’t be left alone.”

     “Shouldn’t we check on the kids first, Grace? You know, make sure they’re all right.”

     “I don’t think so. You said they weren’t moving. Maybe they’re dead. We could be accused of murder.”

     “The men just went down that corridor on the right. Let’s follow them.”

     “Are you nuts, Harvey? We could be the next ones killed.”

     “You can stay and read your book. But I’ve got to do this.”

     “Well, you’re not leaving me here alone. Let’s go. I’m coming with you.”

     So, as crazy as it seems, Grace and I decided to pursue the men down the corridor. They turned right heading toward the food court. We stayed close behind them. As we rounded the corner, we came face to face with them. Both men had strange expressions on their faces. They spun around and pointed to their wives standing about ten feet behind them.

     Music blared from the overhead speakers. Beside the women, the babies, a boy and a girl—two perfectly crafted robots—danced to the music.

     Then I noticed cameras poking through holes in a black curtain, labeled “Construction Area.” Shocked by all of this, I turned toward Grace. She had a gleam in her eyes and a grin on her face.

     She chuckled and spouted, “Harvey, dear, you did say you wanted to be on the new Candid Camera reality TV show airing early next year. Well, my darling, your wish has been granted. ‘Happy Birthday!’”

     I felt two-feet tall and totally embarrassed. But the warm feeling inside of me surged as the crowd gathered sung “Happy Birthday.”

     Grace giggled, embraced me, and gave me a passionate kiss. The audience applauded and a guy yelled, “That’s a wrap.”

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