It was 8pm. Erica was sitting alone on a bench at the quiet suburban Fern Rock train station. She had just gotten off work and was waiting for the north-bound commuter train to take her towards home.
This had been her routine for the past several weeks. In an effort to save money costs, her and her husband Robert had decided for her to use the train to get back and forth to work instead of using her car. Once she had gotten the hang of the schedule, she found it wasn't all that bad, in fact she quite enjoyed it. She still drove from their home far out in the country. It was a twenty minute drive to the nearest station in Ridge Valley. She would park her car and catch the south-bound train towards Philadelphia to the Fern Rock station. Then she would catch a bus the rest of the way to her work.
She only worked part-time, three days a week from 11am-7pm, so the train wasn't that busy with commuters coming or going to work. The waiting time wasn't bad either, except for on the way home, she usually had to wait about a half hour at the Fern Rock station for the next train. But it was a pleasant time of the year, when winter was giving way to spring. It was still chilly in the evening, but not uncomfortably so, and the nights were peaceful in this quiet suburban station.
Erica sat patiently and read a book as she waited. She was your average young woman, the perfect young wife who lived next door. At 25, she was a pleasant sight to anyone who happened upon her sitting at the train station. Long blonde hair tied back in a knot, black framed glasses over her green eyes intent on her book. Short and lithe, at 5'2" and 120lbs., she kept herself in good shape, and her figure showed it. Tonight she was wearing a professional black skirt that came down to just above her knees, which she had crossed with her book on her lab. She kept warm with her tan coat, although she had only two buttons fastened, showing plenty cleavage and milky white skin and a few faint beauty freckles on her upper chest.
She looked up from her book as she heard approaching footsteps. A black guy walked towards her down the station platform. As he approached he looked down at her, smiled, and gave her a greeting nod, then continued past her to the next bench and sat down upon it.
Erica looked at her watch. 7:45pm, another 15 minutes before the train was due to arrive. She turned back to her book, and she began wagging her dangling, dainty foot, to which her sandal lightly slapped her heel. In her peripheral vision she noticed movement from the black guy. She glanced slightly over at him. He was pulling what looked like a textbook from his backpack that he had with him. He appeared about her age. Must be a student at one of the universities in the area, she thought. He was well dressed and casual, athletic build and well groomed, she surmised. She exhaled, and flipped the page on her book.
Soon the train arrived, and she boarded. The black guy also boarded. They were the only ones on the train. He chose the third seat down from her. About ten stops later, the train arrived at the Ridge Valley station. She gathered up her things and stood up. She looked up to find the black guy in the aisle in front of her.
"After you ma'am", he said after he gave a hand gesture.
"Thank you", she whispered as smiled shyly and quickly glanced at him then away again, and moved to exit the train.
The station was just as deserted as all the others. She walked to her car in the empty parking lot. As she got in, she watched as the black guy continued walking on past, crossed the street and turned around a corner. Funny, she thought, she had never seen him on the train previously. Then she thought that spring semester had just started, so it would make sense if he was a student. She started up the car and went home.
At home her husband Robert was already in bed but awake watching TV. They greeted and kissed, and she took off her clothes until she was naked, and she climbed in bed next to him. He turned off the TV and they talked for a short time about their day. Then they had sex and went fast asleep after that.
They had been married for two years, but had been dating for four years before that. Robert was in the Navy, stationed at a base near Philadelphia. They had been there since he transferred about 6 months ago. Erica grew up in a small town in Northern California, where they had met when he was stationed out there. When he got orders to come to the East Coast she had married him.
She loved being married to Robert. Their marriage was a strong and stable one, and her life with him in the Navy was an adventurous one by the standards that she had known growing up with her family in her small hometown. Her adjustment to urban life around the Philadelphia area was made easier due to her willingness to adapt in what she saw as a positive change of environment from her cloistered, small town life before she met Robert.
Next day she went to work, and on her way home, she again saw the young black man at the train station. Again he smiled at her in greeting, and she smiled back at him. He sat down and opened one of his textbooks. She glanced over at him. She never had much interaction with black people. There were none in her hometown's high school, in fact, she couldn't remember ever seeing one at all in her entire town. She never heard anything positive from her parents about black folk, although she never considered them racist.
Looking at this young man, she didn't see anything bad or wrong about him. She thought he was somewhat good-looking, for a black man, that is. He looked up and turned to look at her looking at him. It was then that Erica realized that she had been staring. He smiled at her. Embarrassed and flustered she quickly turned her attention down to her book. She hoped the train would hurry up.
She arrived home without further incident. Four days later, on a Tuesday, she was once again on her way home from work, and as before the black man arrived at the station. She was reading her book as usual. She didn't look up this time. He stopped in front of her.
"Excuse me, ma'am. I can't help but notice what you are reading. That is a very engaging book."
She looked up at him, a little caught off guard. She cleared her throat.
"Oh, um, yes I think so too. So you have read it?"
"Oh yea, I actually did a report on it last semester. My instructor gave me good marks on it. Said I was quite insightful."
"That's nice. So you go to college then?"
"That's right. Uh, do you mind if I sit?"
"Oh, yes, of course." Erica slid over and he sat down.
"My name is Trevor, by the way. Or Tre for short. I actually prefer Tre."
"Erica. Um...that is my name." She was really acting shyly. He smiled charmingly at her blush.
"Nice to meet you, Erica. A pretty name that is. It suits you very well."
"Thank you", she smiled.
They soon struck up a conversation, about the book and his college studies. The train came and they boarded and continued the conversation as they sat across from each other. She found him to be very charming and intelligent, and soon she felt at ease. When they got off at their station they exited still engaged in conversation.
"Well, Tre, it was nice talking to you. Um, do you need a ride anywhere? My car is just over there."
"Oh, no that's ok. I just live next block over. But thank you, and maybe we can talk later."
"Ok. Good night."
"Good night, Erica."
On her drive home, she replayed her encounter with Tre through her mind. She smiled at her shy behavior.
For the remainder of the week, her and Tre talked more and more on their way home. They became quite friendly, and she found herself thinking more and more about him, and even looking forward to their encounters. She felt safer having someone to talk to, than being alone. At one point she mentioned her commuter friend to Robert, and he agreed that he felt her having a traveling partner was best for her safety.