Chapter Text
Rumors of a haunted train have circulated through the streets of New York for years. They say it's an abandoned train that runs at midnight, granting wishes to the lucky souls brave enough to bridge the gap between this world and the next. Then, when the moon is at its fullest and the world is dead asleep, It plows through the night like a twisted storm, leaving nothing but a trail of smoke behind.
The locals heed its roar, cower at its doors, but cling to the idea that they too could have the object of their wildest dreams. But, of course, that's just a rumor.
***
"Shit, shit, shit!"
Ash trusted himself down the subway stairs holding onto the steel railing, so he wouldn't fall flat on his face. He was fucking livid right now. His meeting with Dino had lasted longer than planned, leaving him irritable and exhausted. The pervy bastard already had the audacity to bother him, but to make him sit through some boring-ass board meeting with a bunch of rich snobs was a whole new low. But, God, if this fucker was the reason he'd be stranded in the subway, he'd waltz right into his room and slit his throat.
So here he was, sprinting through the subway station, hoping he could catch the last train. Now, if he were smart, he'd have just gotten a taxi or, even better, walk home; clearly, he was too pissed off to think rationally. Instead, Ash raced through the platform's steps, making it to the bottom just in time. He took a second to catch his breath, pulling out his phone to make sure he hadn't missed the train entirely.
11:59
It was fucking 11:59.
Now under normal circumstances, Ash would've just counted his losses and just walked home. But, he was more than 13 blocks away from his downtown apartment and was not in the mood to walk back home at 11:59 at night. Fuck, he wanted to scream.
He turned around, preparing to walk back up the stairs before his hair started to move, and the sound of a moving train flooded his senses. He whipped his head around, his hair still swaying in the wind, trying to catch a glimpse of the train pulling into the station.
What the fuck-
The train stopped before Ash had the time to process the bizarre sight in front of him. He rechecked his phone, hoping this was just a weird fever dream and that he didn't get the time wrong.
12:00
He looked up just in time to watch the train doors open slowly, emitting a soft creak as it stopped. Soon the train started to glow, and a blinding red light filled his vision. Ash stood there in awe for a moment. He couldn't move; his feet were frozen in place.
A part of him was confused. Why the hell was there a train running at midnight? And what's with the freaky lights? He had to be hallucinating or something, right?? He just couldn't wrap his head around any of this. And yet, he was still mesmerized by the whole thing. So before he knew it, he'd boarded the train, taking a seat a few feet away from the closing doors.
"Fuck I'm gonna regret this..."
The train began to wobble slightly, signaling its departure, giving Ash a chance to look out the window before he left the station for good.
Things were normal for a while. Despite the earlier display, the inside looked like your average subway car. It had sticky floors, the old confusing terminal map, and even the dingy old benches were there. Honesty, he still couldn't believe he was on a train and not already passed out in his shitty apartment.
So, he continued to sit there in silence, aimlessly staring out the window. He closed his eyes, attempting to tune out the sound of the train clashing against the tracks. Just when he could feel himself getting comfy, someone had to come in and ruin this for him.
"Hey."
Ash's eyes shot open almost immediately. "Christ!?"
His reaction must've startled the stranger since he takes a few steps back.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."
Ash takes a moment to assess the kid in front of him. He had fluffy blackish-gray hair with dark brown eyes that seemed to glow in the dimly lit space. This kid didn't look a day older than 14. Great, not only was he stuck on an empty train with a middle schooler, but the kid just so happened to be nosy too.
"Helloooo?" the boy starts waving his hand in front of Ash's face. Okay, now he was annoyed.
"What?"
"Oh, so he speaks. I was starting to think you were ignoring me."
Ash frowned. "Sorry, but I'm not in the mood to talk to some random stranger on the train."
The boy chuckled a little. "Jeez, don't get your panties in a twist; I'm curious, is all."
"About what?"
The boy swayed slightly, shifting his weight between his left and right foot before leaning over.
"What's a pretty boy like you doing on the train this late at night?"
"I should be asking you the same thing, kid. Isn't it past your bedtime?"
The boy leans back, his eyes gleaming with amusement. "Come on, humor me a little. The trains not stopping anytime soon."
"Why don't you just mind your own business?" Ash snapped. The boy sat down beside him, pouting with his arms crossed. "Jeez, what a buzzkill."
Ash wasn't in the mood to deal with some kid's little temper tantrum, so he just tuned him out, hoping he'd get bored and leave him alone. So the two sat in silence for a while, swaying side to side ever so slightly. It didn't take long for the kid to start bugging him again, but this time it was the sound of his laughter that pissed him off.
"What is it now?"
The boy turned to face him. "Oh, nothing. I just remembered so funny rumor I heard a while back."
"What rumor?"
The boy smirked a bit. "The one about a haunted train."
Ash looked at him, puzzled. "A haunted what?"
"Come on, you've never heard of it? Some say it only runs at midnight and that it can grant peoples wishes."
"Well, that's stupid."
"Sure, but if enough people believe it, then that's gotta count for something, right?"
Ash didn't really care either way. The only people who believe in haunted wish-granting trains were idiots, and he definitely wasn't an idiot. If you want something so badly, you should work to get it yourself instead of taking the easy way out.
"Why the hell should I care."
"Come on, surely even you have something you'd wanna wish for?
Ash glared at him.
"Just think about it. You could have anything from your wildest dreams, from cars to cash, to hookers and blow. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me."
Ash scoffed at this.
"The fuck would I need any of that for? All of that is shit is basically worthless, and if you ask me, I'm not dumb enough to waste my wish on something superficial."
The boy stared at him, a surprised expression painted on his face. He hoped his retort was enough to shut the kid up for good this time. However, the boy's surprise was quickly replaced by a sinister grin.
"Oh, so your one of those guys."
He leaned in again, causing Ash to lean back in response. "Let me guess, you've got a personal vendetta against a couple people you wish were dead?"
"W-What are you-"
"I'm right, aren't I?"
Before Ash could reply, he could feel his body tense up in fear. The boy's eyes had gone from a dark brown to a mesmerizing scarlet in an instant. He chuckled, his sinister smile softening in response.
"You're a tough one, Mister Lynx." he leaned back a bit, pulling a hand back to stroke his chin. "Honestly, I haven't met a man as interesting as you in..." he paused, his gaze turning distant and cold. "Let's just say...in a while."
Soon that mischievous looked returned as his attention shifted once again. "So, why don't we make a deal?" he tilted his head slightly, placing his hand on the subway bench.
"I know all about the terrible things those men did to you. All the ways they hurt you. Made you tremble with fear." he moved his hand, placing it on Ash's. "I know just how badly you wanna kill everyone who's wronged you." he leaned in again, stopping just shy of Ash's ear.
"So, if you give me what I want, I'll make sure those men are more than just gone."
Ash was stunned. This kid wasn't just crazy; he was fucking insane!? He should've known something was off when he stepped through those train doors. And now he's stuck on this fucking devil train, with a middle schooler whispering his shitty sales pitch in his ear. Not to mention he somehow knew all about his dirty little secret, something only he and a couple others knew about up until recently. And the icing on this crappy cake, not only were his eyes glowing, but he somehow magically knew his name without him mentioning it once.
But even then, a part of him was intrigued. He didn't know the kid for long (or at all, for that matter), but he could tell he wasn't fucking around. This offer was genuine. And for a small price...he could wipe all those greasy old men off the face of the earth forever. It just sounded too good to be true.
"Come on, what do ya say?"
The boy grabbed his hands, pulling them upward while clutching onto his palm. Ash couldn't speak. His body was frozen in place, leaving him a wistful bystander in his own body. "Do we have a deal?" the boy whispered.
And before you knew it, he could feel the boy shake his hand, and the air around them shift, releasing Ash from his temporary paralysis. Almost immediately, he stood up, slapping the boy's hand away from his, clutching his now sweaty palms for dear life.
"The fuck is wrong with you!? I didn't agree to shit, asshole!"
He struggled to catch his breath, his body still tense from the anticipation of the younger boy's next move. However, the boy simply ignored him, choosing to look out the window.
"That's a shame; it looks like we've reached your stop."
"Wha-"
Just then, the train screeched to a halt, causing Ash to stumble before regaining his footing. Ash whipped his head towards the boy, looking at him in shock and confusion. The boy simply smiled.
"Don't worry, we'll be seeing each other again soon."
The subway doors opened, revealing the desolate platform on the other side. Ash walked towards the train doors stepping onto the platform before turning around to face the boy inside.
"Don't forget to pay your dues, Mister Lynx, or the next time we meet will be in hell."
And just like that, the doors closed, the boy vanished, and the train disappeared, leaving nothing but a trail of smoke…
***
Ash sprinted back home that day. The next morning, he woke up in his rundown apartment with bearly any memory of the events that took place on that train. A part of him was convinced it was all just one big fever dream. The train, the boy, everything. It couldn't have been real. Still, real or not, there was no use getting worked up over it. Instead, he decided to spend that day with his gang. Better to get drunk in some dusty bar with his boys than think about whatever he dreamt up last night. He was sitting on one of the bar stools nursing a glass of whiskey with Alex, his second in command, sitting in the chair next to him.
"You alright, boss? You've been holding onto that glass for a while."
Ash turned to look at him. His expression was stoic, but it wasn't hard to tell he was concerned. "Yeah, I'm fine." he waved his hand in dismissal. Alex took that as his cue to shut up and continued chatting with the others. He downed his glass of whiskey before looking up at the little tv hanging in the corner. It shuffled through a couple channels before ending up on the news. The first thing he noticed was a picture of Dino on the left-hand side of the screen. He turned away, not wanting to think about Dino after the mess he had to go through because of him last night. Wait-
Dino's on the news. He got up from his seat and approached one of the guys holding the tv remote.
"Oy, turn the Tv up."
"Oi, uh-" they spared him a quick glance before doing as asked.
"This morning, renowned businessman and mafia don Dino Golzine was founded dead in his mansion near downtown Manhattan by authorities.
Ash took a step back. No, no, no, this can't be happening.
"While his cause of death is unknown, the police believe it was caused by a heart attack..."
"Holy, shit..." he could hear his boys murmuring to each other. Ash couldn't believe what he was hearing. The fat bastard was doing just fine yesterday, and he's had no heart-related medical problems that he knew of. There's no way...
"If you give me what I want, I'll make sure those men are more than just gone."
The words ran through Ash's mind over and over. The deal that kid was talking about. No, there's no way. He didn't...
But deep down, Ash knew exactly what that boy had done. What he had done. And just like that, his deepest darkest desire had finally come true, just like he said it would. And there was nothing he could do about it...