(for lrviolet)

The station is unusually empty today, I think, as I push through the metal gates and walk along the platform. I look around for a moment, unnerved by the quiet of the space before gathering my scarf closer and around my neck as I shuffle towards two benches facing away from each other on the far right side.

I let a sigh out through my nose. I am alone, I think, and while I prefer it to be this way, the thought terrifies me even more.

The wind blows through the open space a second later, billowing the hem of my skirt below my knees as I pushed my hair back to prevent it from swishing towards my face. I blink back tears from the wind. The immediately February chill strikes me the moment it passes, and I find myself thinking of a moment lost in time where I’d been here in a somewhat similar situation—

Alone, but not really, in a quiet platform taking me to God-knows-where.

I remember wearing a mint green sundress, littered with embroidered flowers at the neckline and hem; crème wedges fit perfectly on my feet and a man’s jacket hanging from my shoulders. I remember my lips strained in a straight line, my hands clammy from a familiar warmth suddenly lost and goosebumps rising along my arms. I remember a man standing before me, his eyes sorrowful but determined, speaking to me in hushed tones… drifting… fading…

Heavy footsteps pulls me out of my reverie and though I do not turn, I feel my heart begin to thump against my chest. A weight sags against the bench behind me, fidgeting for a moment before sighing softly—the intruder’s feet scraping the cement under his shoes. I recognized him before he could say a word.

I would have known it was him even after a thousand years passed.

“Fancy meeting you here,” he tells me after a beat, his tone tentative as though he wasn’t sure if he should acknowledge me. “Going home for the break?”

I nod instead of speaking but I know he knows I’ve responded because he speaks again, “Me too. My train’s late though, and I guess yours is too. What are the chances, eh?”

My lips twitch upwards at his nervous tone but I still don’t speak. It’s been awhile since I’ve heard his voice and I’ve missed it t