young and infinite | a short story

young

6th June 2012 [mid-afternoon]

It was a breezy summer evening when the girl met the boy.

She had taken a detour on the way home from school. She had gone passed the pond instead of the bus stop, and went left instead of right. Going right lead her to an old path besides the wood. Buried under dirt were the remains of an old train track. She had heard stories about this part of the woods. Some said it was enchanted, and would pull lone wonderers deep into its roots, never to be seen again. Others said it was the most romantic spot in the village. However the girl strongly disagreed, those people must have never seen the fountain on the square.

The truth was, this part of the woods was abandoned. It used to be where the foresters lived. And there used to be a train station north of these tracks that carried wood out of the village.

The girl found herself following these tracks. Lessons had finished early, anyways, dad wouldnt be expecting her until after noon. She felt free in these woods. Birds chirping followed her trail, and with that the smell of fresh pine. No one ever went here anymore. They were move invested in the shops at the square, and the new station that took them to the next biggest city.

No one ever went here, so she was alone, but she didnt mind it.

After about fifteen minutes of trenching, the girl spotted the train station. It was just on the outskirts of the forest. It's red painted walls were flaking and covered in vines and various plants. It looked some what magical. The roof seemed intact, and the big glass windows on either sides of the building didnt look to be too broken. She wondered why she hadn't come here before.

The doors were some what rustic. The station was definitely more rundown than she had thought. From where she was standing in front of the tall building, she could see that on either side of it were two holes; openings to the building that looked like they belonged there (rather than a hole in the side of the wall, smashed open by gangsters or worn away with rot and rain). As the heavy doors wouldnt budge, she took the left opening. This is where the trains must have come through, she guessed, I can still see the tracks lead up to here.

Inside of the building, it was beautiful. The plants that surrounded and grew up the train station on the outside also made it into the building. She climbed up onto the platform, dropping her book bag on a near by bench, and noticing a little house of some sorts further down. The motorman probably controlled from there, she thought, or whatever else it is that train drivers do.

The evening sun shone through the right window, creating a sort of shadow on the platform floor. It was warmer in here, like a green house.

Just then, the girl heard foot steps behind her. She spun around to find a boy, roughly her age, but taller. He had a mop of dark brown hair on the top of his head. His white t-shirt and shorts had streaks of brown - dirt maybe - and the palms of his hands beard a similar colour; had he been climbing?

"Looking for this," he said, holding up a bag. Her bag.

"Give it back," she said, reaching out for her possession. The boy, however, pulled back and ran past her.

"Catch me first, Tinker Bell." The boy was running towards the house now. She rolled her eyes at the name and ran after him, not sure what exactly was happening. As she got to the house, slightly out of breath, she pulled open the red door and climbed the small steps. On the second floor, she found the boy leaning against a window without any glass in it. Her bag lay next to him, propped against the wall. The boy was looking out onto the platform, his back towards her, but he knew she was here, she was sure of it.

Slowly, she tiptoed up to the stranger, and waited roughly a meter behind him. Yet the boy didn't budge, instead he lifted his arm and pointed his finger towards the roof outside.