Tracks (BoyxBoy)

One

One

            The train’s defining whistle woke me from my much needed slumber, dazing me for a few moments. I slowly sat up, rubbing my temples fiercely as I began to gather myself again. The young lady, Samantha, stood awkwardly in front of me, holding out her hand as if she was offering to help me up from my seat. When I reached out to her, she yanked her hand away, shaking her head and frowning.

            Confused, I blinked a few times. My dark eyebrows furrowed as I looked her over. She rolled her bright eyes and readjusted her purse. “I know you stole my ticket,” she said blankly, setting her free hand on her hip and drumming her fingers against the bone.

            My grey eyes fell to the floor where my bag was sitting. “I’m sorry,” I apologized honestly. I hated stealing from people, but I hated getting caught even more. “I can pay you back if you’d wish?” I glanced up at her for a moment before shuffling through my bag for my emergency money. When I pulled out the twenty dollar bill, Samantha just stared at me. This time, guilt filled her eyes. She shook her head and brushed her long red hair off to one side.

            “No, keep your money. I’ll get over it.” She closed her eyes for a second before heading to the door and jumping off the train.

            In slight relief, I stuffed the twenty back into the bottom of my bag where I knew it’d be safe before zipping it up tightly, slinging it over my shoulder and following her lead. When I stepped onto the platform, a solid wave of heat battered against my heavily covered body. I quickly dropped everything and stripped myself of my sweater and rolled up my black jeans, stuffing the sweater into my black backpack and pulling it over my shoulder again.

            It had been a while since I had been to the much famed state of California. I had almost forgotten how hot it could get. I wiped the small beads of sweat from my forehead and headed toward the station, relieved to find out that it was air conditioned the second I stepped inside.

            “Thank God,” I mumbled, slowing my pace so I could enjoy the cool air that dried the sweat that formed in the few minutes it took me to get from the train to the station. I ran my fingers through my thin blonde hair, loving the feeling of the breeze blowing through my sweaty locks.

            Samantha appeared in front of me, holding back a small giggle. “Enjoying the weather?” She had switched from a sweater to a tank top, holding the sweater in her arms. “What’s your name by the way?” she asked innocently, still holding onto her purse with a death grip. She didn’t trust me.

            “Why should I tell you?” I gathered myself together and walked past her, heading toward the front entrance with a quickened pace.

            She followed after me, grabbing my elbow as she attempted to stop me. “Please just tell me,” she nearly demanded, her rounded pale face fixed into a frown. “I’m not going to tell on you. I just want to know who I rode the train with halfway across the country.” She smiled, letting go of my arm and folding hers.

            “Elijah,” I mumbled, patting down my pockets for a cigarette, only to disappoint myself when I couldn’t find one.

            “Samantha,” she responded to my silence, pulling a cigarette from her purse and handing it to me. I lifted it to my mouth, letting her light it before inhaling the toxics. She stuck her lighter back into the front of her shorts, still smiling happily. It had started to scare me a bit.

            An awkward silence grew strong between us very quickly. I gave her one last nod to thank her for the cigarette before turning away and walking off, hoping to have finally lost her. Unfortunately, my hopes were crushed almost instantly. I didn’t turn around, but I could feel that she was still following me. I stopped dead in my tracks, spinning around on my heel and ripping my cigarette from my mouth. “What do you want now?” I muttered, glaring her down.