When Gretchen took a seat on the northbound Amtrak train departing Lincoln Station, her car was noticeably empty, a rare thing even though it was eleven in the evening. She found herself on this route at least once a month. Going to visit her mother who was in a nursing facility in Hartford Connecticut.
There were no more than five others that she could count, and they were some rows ahead of her. She settled into a window seat and slipped her earbuds in. Hannah Grace was singing "I'd rather go blind".
Knowing this route fairly well, she was not surprised when the train began to slow and finally stop at the station in the small town of Norwalk. The stop was short, and the train was moving again in just a few minutes.
"Do you mind?" A feminine voice stirred Gretchen to look up. She was pointing to the seat beside Gretchen. Gretchen nodded.
The woman sat down beside Gretchen. "I really dislike setting alone." She explained. "You never know, right?"
Gretchen removed her earbuds. "Excuse me?"
"People." The woman said. "Never know who might want to set beside you." She waved a hand in the air. "When you are alone." She explained.
"Oh, yes, of course." Gretchen replied.
"Lilith." She said. Instead of offering Gretchen her hand, she simply patted Gretchen on her knee. A leg that was bare to mid-thigh. Gretchen was nineteen and short skirts were something she was quite fond of. Gretchen was a lovely, beautiful girl. Tall and slender, and her short curly black hair framed her face in a most adorable way.
She offered Lilith a slight smile but eased her leg away slightly.
