Paper Planes

Strangers

Emma stood behind the faded yellow line, waiting for her train to arrive. Her phone was dead but she hadn't bothered to remove her headphones. Arms crossed, she leaned forward to inspect the track another time. No train. 

"There is a delay," someone stated. It was a woman, about the same age as Emma, standing on the other side of the platform. Her hair was tied up in a sleek ponytail and she was wearing a knit sweater despite the heat. 

"How do you know?" Emma asked. The woman pointed at the tiny TV mounted above Emma's head, displaying platform numbers and departure times for the trains. There was a delay, which meant Emma would be late for work again. Her boss would be furious. Then again, her boss was always angry.  

Emma placed her hands on her hips as she seriously considered going home and calling in sick. "What's your name?" 

It was too early to engage in small talk with a stranger, no matter how cute that stranger was. The woman was tall, had wide blue eyes and a perfect nose. Suddenly, Emma felt self-conscious in her overalls that were splattered in paint. Today was Friday, the only day Emma and her co-workers were allowed to dress casually at work. 

"I'm Emma. I've never seen you here before," she answered, pulling her headphones out. Emma often saw the same people during her commute from Toronto to Unionville. 

"My name is Megan. I'm meeting a friend in Markham today. We're going out for lunch," she said with a dazzling smile.

"That sounds fun. I'm heading to my shitty job." I rolled my eyes at the thought of going to work. "Where are you guys eating at?"

"I'm not sure yet. My friend wanted to surprise me." They were silent for a few seconds. Emma could tell that Megan was contemplating something. "Do you want to join us?"

The question caught Emma off guard and she wasn't sure how to respond. On one hand, she wanted a chance to know Megan better but on the other, the woman was a complete stranger. "That depends, are you planning to kidnap me?"

Megan laughed. There was something so angelic about it. "I promise not to kidnap you." She paused, giving Emma a sly grin. "Unless you want us to kidnap you. Sounds to me like you could use a break from work."

"Ugh. Tell me about it. My boss is a total pain. He expects me to churn out blog post after blog post." Normally Emma stayed clear of discussing her personal or work life with strangers. Maybe it was the heat or the beautiful stranger but Emma felt giddier and more open than usual. 

"You're a writer, then?" Emma titled her head, indicating her confusion. "I thought you were a painter." She waved a hand at Emma's overalls, causing heat to spread across Emma's face.

"I paint in my free time," Emma said with a shrug, adjusting her purse across her body. 

"I'm also a painter! Mind if I come over to your side?" Crossing across train tracks wasn't allowed, something that was usually met with a heavy fine. Emma knew this because of the constant announcements she heard every day at the stations and now also in her sleep. Megan would have to go down a set of stairs, walk across a short hallway and climb up another set of stairs to get to Emma. 

"Yes, come over to the dark side," Emma said with a fake evil grin. As she waited for Megan to emerge, Emma internally cringed at her own awkwardness. Dark side? What was she thinking? No adult said things like that. 

Was Megan flirting or being nice? It was always hard to tell. 

She waited for about five minutes but Megan didn't show up. Emma found herself questioning whether she had just imagined the entire conversation with Megan. Another five minutes went by and the train finally pulled up, its lights flashing and bells ringing. The people on the platform shuffled slightly to the right as the train came to a halt. 

Emma waited for as long as she could and even considered running downstairs to check on Megan. She felt something during their conversation exchanged over rusty train tracks. But she was already running late and currently on probation for previous tardiness. She couldn't afford to be late today. 

Sighing, she boarded the train, her eyes searching for the woman. She tore her gaze away only once the doors closed and they started moving. Leaning against her seat, Emma replayed the conversation over in her head. 

There was a dull ache building in her chest as she mourned a future that could have been. Perhaps fate would unite them once again. Maybe they would run into each other at Union Station someday and Emma could offer to buy drinks.