They Fade Away

Liza walked over to the train station, with a hot coffee in one hand and a novel in another. It was beautiful morning, you could see the orange leaves on the trees through the huge windows and hear the chirping of the birds. She waited for some time, observing each and everything around her like for example a man standing beside her was probably a banker or a lawyer because you could tell he was running late and he kept getting calls. The guy paced around the platform for a while and finally gave up and maybe decided to take a cab or just return home. Liza looked for life around and found a bird perched on top of a hollow gap between the 2 platforms. Guess no one wanted to board a 6:45 am train to some small town to get the best garlic bread. As the train approached, she noticed an empty car and decided to board it. She noticed a man sitting at the very end sitting at the window deep in thought. Guess she wasn’t alone after all. For a while, she read but soon enough boredom took over her. She couldn’t watch or call someone as there was no network on the moving train. Liza observed the man; his eyes were like a honey drops, his achromatic greys were tied up in a tight bun and his goatee was filled with bread crumbs. It would feel creepy if she kept staring at him so she opened her phone and pretended to look at something intensely while stealing glances at the man.

Arnold was so happy; he finally is going to meet his grandchild and her wonderful daughter after years. He packed a sandwich for the trip and hopped on the train. He could imagine how his princess turned out, same blue eyes, long brunette hair or maybe she cut them short? He was lost in thought when the train halted to a stop and a girl boarded. She was maybe 25 or 30. She was reading one of his favourite novels but instead he started thinking about how he missed his daughter. He caught the girl stealing glances at him but he just stayed put. After some time, he observed her too. How there was a scar right beside her nose, how her eyes were filled with curiosity, how her hair was in the shade of brown and black. He caught her eye and they communicated, with their eyes. She saw happiness in one and sadness in another. Liza shot him a pretty smile and he smiled back. For a long time, Liza and Arnold just looked at each other, without talking just sitting. It was like an intense staring contest but no one held back.

As quickly as we make memories, quickly they fade. The small interaction stayed with Liza and Arnold till the end of journey, or maybe some more days but they faded away.