The boy on the train

It’s late, about 3 am. The train still hasn’t left the station, but Joey doesn’t mind. Her phone died about an hour ago, and she just finished the last chapter of her book. She has a backpack with a few of her things but nothing else. So she just sits there looking at the empty tracks until the train starts rolling, and she closes her eyes.

A few minutes later, the train comes to a stop, and Joey wakes up. She doesn’t notice if anyone gets in or if she’s still alone until three people pass where she’s sitting: an old lady who looks like she just broke out of one of those old people’s homes, a younger woman who must have just woken up to get somewhere early, and a boy.

Joey can’t really see his face because he’s too far away, but he looks like someone who doesn’t want to be bothered, just like her. He’s wearing dark jeans with some old Nike sneakers and a leather jacket. Joey can’t really tell if he’s tall, but it looks like he is. He looks about the same age as her, maybe a little bit older but not by much. She wonders what he’s doing for someone who looks like he has school tomorrow, although she’s here too.

Joey keeps looking out the window, still wondering what everyone else is doing here. When she looks over at the boy, he’s wearing his headphones, nodding his head to whatever music he’s listening to. What music does he listen to, she wonders? Would she like it? The old lady seems asleep, while the young lady looks like she’s learning some text for a play or something. But they don’t interest her as much as the boy does. Joey keeps looking at him, and maybe he senses it, or he was just curious too, but when he turns around, his eyes meet hers immediately. She wants to look away but can’t. He smirks at her and turns back around. That smile was beautiful, Joey thinks, still looking to where his eyes were just one second ago. Still thinking about his sweet smile, she closes her eyes and falls asleep.

When she wakes up again, it’s six in the morning. The sun slowly awakens too, and when she looks for the boy she dreamed of, he’s gone. “Looking for me, sunshine?” Her head snaps back, and she finds him just a few rows behind her. “Wow, you’re creepy,” she says to him, now seeing his face better. He’s handsome with beautiful brown eyes and the same dark brown hair. “I’m creepy? You were watching me since the minute I got on this train.” “That is not true,” she snaps back at him. He doesn’t bother replying, just gives her the same smirk he had the last time. “What is a girl like you even doing here?” he asks instead. “A girl like me,” she laughs, “Well, if you’re so interested in my life, I’m on my way to New York.” “Alone, during a school day?” “Yup, I don’t go to school anymore,” she replies confidently. “So being a little rebellious girl because your parents didn’t give you the car you wanted?” he assumes.