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Eda gazed at the train that screamed to a stop on the rails, billowing smoke blowing into the wind from its chimneys, through the window of her ticket booth. Breaking through the sleepy daze caused by her monotonous routine, she hurriedly pulled the sleeve of her pinstripe blouse up, to glance at the golden-rimmed watch that ticked away.
3:30. When they would have their break. Sure enough, the locomotive that had paused here was at its final destination, and as a rush of people escaped from its doors, clambering onto the platform to try and reach the exit, Eda looked out for a familiar face.
‘Hi, excuse me, could I buy a ticket?’
Eda sharply glanced at the woman that was waiting impatiently by the box, who was annoyed by her distracted state.
‘Huh?’
‘A ticket, please.’ The woman was on the verge of snapping.
‘Well, obviously a ticket, do I look like a soda vendor? I mean what type of ticket.' Eda huffed, leaning against the counter and cocking her head as if to say well?.
‘One-way. To Palm Stings.’
‘Right, well. Here you are. That’s 15 snails.’ Eda sighed, secretly hoping this woman would cause a scene, just for a change. She had dealt with a fair amount of snarky, nasty customers, but it was always the same. Nothing new or exciting ever happened.
She passed the ticket through the gap in the window where the woman snatched it, dropped some coins, murmured a ‘thank you', and went on her way.
She checked her watch. 3:32. Her attention snapped back immediately to the motionless train, to the very front of it where the door opened, and the train conductor came out. She leaned forwards as far as she could, trying to get a glimpse of the person.
And there they were. Walking out, one hand adjusting their overalls strap, the other tugging down on their hat. They had shaggy, mint green hair, and this gorgeously angular face complimented with dimples that Eda was smitten by. They seemed so effortlessly graceful and surprisingly attractive in their train conductor uniform, and she didn’t even know their name. They had never even talked before, which wasn’t too surprising considering they had started working here just over a month for so ago.
It wasn’t always them, but a lot of times, at this exact hour, after the train made its final destination, Eda had the highlight of her shift watching them, a break in her awfully boring day. Other times, it was old Barney on duty, who was nice, but Eda found herself disappointed when he walked through the door of the driver’s cabin rather than her mysterious work crush.
Here they were now, walking nearer, to the breakroom just past her. This was her chance! She would finally say something, tell them how-
‘Edalyn.’ A deep voice grimaced. Again, she averted her gaze to meet the narrowed eyes of her boss, Skelly.
‘Sir! To what do I owe this pleasure?’ She purred, grinning lazily to show off her golden fang. He squinted coldy at her.
‘Your uniform,’ he grunted, ‘It doesn’t match our expectations.’
‘What?!’ She glanced down at herself, at her ironed, grey linen trousers, that had her clean blouse tucked into it, prim and slick. She had actually tried to make an effort today.
He pointed a clawed finger at her hair, which was in a loose ponytail. Whoops.
‘Policy says ticket-sellers must have long hair tied into a bun or braided back. This is messy, and not at all what we represent.’ He growled and Eda resisted the urge to roll her eyes, as she pushed her fingers back through her blazing orange hair, tucking some stray strands back.
‘Sir, a ponytail is just… an extended bun. I don’t see what the problem is.’ She argued but he was getting angrier every second she spoke back.
‘We are going to have problems,’ he hissed, ‘If an employee refuses to listen to orders.’
‘Let her be, Skell. I doubt any customers will be put off from buying a ticket by the state of her hair. Plus, it doesn’t look bad.’
Eda stared, astounded, as the witch she had looked at from afar had somehow materialised in front of her, a hand on their hip as they spoke to Skelly. Immediately, the boss’ face softened and the hint of a smile appeared on his lips.
‘Ah, conductor! I suppose you’re right,’ he glanced at Eda, ‘You better be on your best behaviour, Clawthorne, I’m warning you. I don’t want to see any slacking.’
Eda imitated a proud salute and gave a playful nod, enjoying watching the grimace grow on his face, as he turned around and hobbled away, grunting slightly as he returned to his duties.
Once he was gone, she stepped out of her box to hurriedly watch Skelly disappear round the corner.
‘How- how did you do that?’ Eda cried.
‘I … was a bit of a teacher’s pet in school, honestly. I think he likes me.’
Eda glanced down at the person who was smirking before her, finally close enough to see the vibrant hue of their jade green eyes, the way their glasses just tipped over their nose, the soft curve of their lip. She promptly blushed, looking away.
‘Well. Thank you.’ She said, and they nodded.
‘No problem. I’ll see you around, Clawthorne.’ They smiled and turned around and began strolling to the breakroom.
Clawthorne. Clawthorne?!
‘Wait!’ She yelped, ‘What’s- What’s your name?’
‘Oh, uh, I’m Raine. Raine Whispers. And yours is? I only heard your last name from good ole Skell there, who seems to brighten up just by saying it.’
She snorted, ‘I’m Eda. But he seems very content referring to anything except my actual name. Can you tell he loves me?’
‘I mean, of course! He’s a real sweetheart.’ Raine joked, smiling.
They stood silently for a second, looking at one another, contemplating what to say.
‘Well, Eda. Do- do you want to join me in the breakroom?’ They asked, cracking their knuckles nervously.
‘I could go for 15 minutes of rest, sure.’ She responded and they made their way to the room.
There, they talked a bit more, 15 minutes turning into half an hour, as they found out more about each other, their conversation never seeming to stop or become awkward.
‘I moved out from my parents’ house pretty early, and am now finding out the consequences of that. So, I just need some snails to help me out, that’s all,’ Eda explained, ‘It’s the same thing, every day. Ticket, money, ticket, money, break, ticket.’
‘Seems like you love it.’ Raine laughed, and Eda rolled her eyes.
‘Could anything be more boring? I mean I live nearby, so It makes sense, but still.’ She groaned, clenching her fists.
‘I mean, I get it, there’s no one to talk to, there’s annoying customers, and it’s the same thing everyday. But hey, at least you’ve got company now.’ They grinned and Eda blushed as she smiled back. Never was she more grateful to have gotten in trouble with Skelly.
The next day, they met up at break again. And the next day. And the day after that, as they discovered how well they clicked, never seeming to run out of things to laugh or talk about.
Soon enough, Eda realised she didn’t just have a crush, but she had a friend.
‘I cannot believe Skelly would dare disrespect my hair like that,’ Eda had complained, a week after she and Raine had met, ‘I mean look! It’s a ponytail. He’s so dramatic.’
‘I love your hair.’ Raine commented, absently brushing the tips of their fingers through it, oblivious to the pink on Eda’s cheeks. They looked up suddenly, their face inches away from hers as their own heated red.
‘Thanks.’ She whispered, and Raine gave a tight smile. They glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed.
‘Shit, I’ve got to go. Got another train to conduct.’
‘Lucky you. I’ve got more tickets to sell.’
‘Have fun!’ They trilled, as they grabbed their coat and hat and rushed out the room.
A week later, Raine approached Eda unusually early in the morning, knocking gingerly on the window of the ticket booth.
She perked up, confused, as she opened the door.
‘Raine?’ She asked.
‘Want to do something fun? But a little stupid?’ They exclaimed, taking her hand. She glanced from their intertwined fingers to their green eyes before nodding slowly.
‘Yeah. Yeah, I’m up for stupid.’
‘Come with me.’
They pulled her to the edge of the platform, and unlocked the door to the last cabin of the empty train, opening it and offering her entry in a polite manner. She stepped in and waited for Raine to explain.
‘Through here.’
They pushed open another door, leading to the open area at the back of the train, a small balcony, where you could feel the cold breeze.
‘Skelly has a day off today, and this train is set to depart in a few hours, but from another destination. I have the whole train to myself for about 7 stops so… do you wanna come with? Just for a bit?’
Eda’s eyes brightened as she grinned.
‘Yeah! Yeah, I’d love that.’
‘Barney’s driving today, so… I can stay here with you. Give me a second.’
A few minutes later, the wheels squealed against the metal, before speeding up drastically, and soon, the world was flying past in a blur, the wind relaxing yet sharp against Eda's face.
Eda leaned against the railing of the balcony and stretched her arms out, feeling the breeze between her fingers.
Raine was next to her, clutching onto the rail, eyes partially closed as they felt the cold on their face.
‘This is always the best bit.’ They murmur peacefully. She watched the calm in their expression, how effortless graceful and beautiful they looked, with a few strands of loose hair blowing rapidly, framing their face. She really really liked this witch.
They opened one eye to glance at her, before their face, tinted with pink, burst into a wide grin.
‘I’ve never seen you with your hair out!’ They yelled over the rush of the wind and screech of the train. Eda brought her hand up to her hair, realising that the hair band had flown off, causing her wild tangle of auburn locks to dance freely.
‘I’m breaking more than one rule today!’ She shouted back, smiling impishly, ‘Does it look good?’
‘You’re gorgeous!’
A pause as their face and ears reddened in realisation to what they had said.
‘I mean, I meant your hair… not that you aren’t gorgeous! You are, I really like the way you look, I mean, not that that’s all there is to you! You’re funny and smart- I. I’m going to stop talking.’ their voice quietened as they looked away. They only looked back up when they felt a soft tug on their shoulder.
‘I like you too.’ Eda smiled, and Raine’s face reflected her own.
Gazing at each other in the breeze, as the world sped by behind them, the connection they had felt when they first met seemed to strengthen everyday, becoming something more intense, more special.
Raine looked into the face of the girl who had become someone so important to them in such a short time - her molten gold eyes, her pale, soft skin, her maroon lips that let her fang peak out whenever she did that adorable half-smile.
They felt a rush of affection for her, as they surged forwards, tugging on the collar of her blouse, and kissed her.
Eda moved against their own lips, closing her eyes as she felt the sweet warmth fill her face and body, as she held their cheek and shoulder close. She only broke apart, laughing wildly, when Raine’s hat flew away in a burst, thrown somewhere into the trees beyond the railway.
‘Your hat!’ She snorted, ruffling their messy hair, as they grinned, smitten, at her.
‘I really like you, Eda.’
'Me too. I've been wanting to tell you that for a while.' She chuckled and they pulled her quickly into another kiss.
Eda had been wrong. She thought her daily routine was nothing but dark and dull - but now she found herself doing nothing but looking forward to it. Raine was the light in her life that made her smile, made her laugh, and in return she glowed for Raine. They don't know this yet, but it'll be them two for a long time, them two forever in love. Almost like in every universe, they're meant to be.