The last train always came at 11:40.
It screeched into the old station with a tired metallic groan, doors sliding open to a nearly empty platform. The fluorescent lights above flickered lazily, casting pale reflections on the wet concrete.
Every night, like clockwork, Ren sat on the third bench from the ticket machine.
And every night, at exactly 11:32, someone would sit beside him.
"Still waiting for the last train?" the boy would ask.
Ren would glance sideways and smile softly. "Yeah."
The boy always carried the same canvas bag and wore the same dark blue hoodie with the sleeves pushed slightly above his wrists. His hair was messy in that effortless way, like he had just woken up. Sometimes he smelled faintly like rain.
His name was Kai.
Or at least, that's what he told Ren the first night they met.
"You shouldn't be here this late," Kai had said back then. "It's creepy."
Ren chuckled. "Then why are you here?"
Kai shrugged. "Maybe I was waiting for someone too."
From then on, they met every night.
They talked about stupid things at first. Favorite food. Favorite movies. Which teachers they hated. Kai loved street food and bad horror movies. Ren loved quiet libraries and rainy afternoons.
Some nights they just sat in silence.
But it never felt awkward.
Kai had a habit of leaning back against the bench and looking up at the night sky through the cracked roof of the station.
"Do you ever think about disappearing?" he asked once.
Ren frowned. "What kind of question is that?"
Kai smiled faintly. "Just wondering."
Ren nudged his shoulder lightly. "You're weird."
"Yeah," Kai said. "But you keep showing up."
And Ren did.
Every night.
Even when it rained.
Even when the cold crept into his bones.
Even when the station staff stopped asking why he never boarded the train.
Months passed like that.
One night, Kai was quieter than usual.
"You know," Kai said suddenly, staring at the tracks, "I think you should stop coming here."
Ren blinked. "What?"
Kai's fingers tightened around the strap of his bag.
"You're wasting your nights."
Ren laughed softly. "Says the guy who's here every night too."
Kai didn't laugh.
Ren noticed his hands were shaking.
"…Kai?"
Kai finally turned to look at him.
His eyes were red.
"Ren," he whispered, "you should go home."
The way he said it made Ren's chest tighten.
"I will," Ren said gently. "After the last train."
Kai shook his head slowly.
"You never take the last train."
Ren opened his mouth to answer—
Then paused.
The train roared into the station.
11:40.
Wind blasted across the platform as the doors slid open.
Passengers stepped out.
Passengers stepped in.
But Ren stayed seated.
Just like always.
Kai stood up.
"Come on," he said quietly.
Ren frowned. "Where are you going?"
Kai didn't answer.
Instead, he reached into his canvas bag and pulled out something folded.
A newspaper clipping.
He placed it gently in Ren's hands.
Ren unfolded it.
The date was from one year ago.
The headline read:
"College Student Dies After Pushing Stranger Off Train Tracks."
Ren's stomach dropped.
There was a photo.
A blurry image taken at night.
Paramedics.
Police tape.
And a boy lying on the platform.
Messy hair.
Dark hoodie.
Kai.
Ren's hands trembled.
"…This isn't funny."
Kai's voice was soft behind him.
"I didn't want you to find out like this."
Ren turned slowly.
Kai looked… different now.
Paler.
Almost transparent beneath the harsh station lights.
"You died," Ren whispered.
Kai nodded.
"That night… someone slipped onto the tracks."
Ren's breath caught.
"I pushed him out of the way," Kai continued. "But I didn't make it back up."
The train had already been moving.
Ren's vision blurred.
"No," he said hoarsely. "That's—"
Kai stepped closer.
"Ren… do you remember what happened after?"
Ren shook his head weakly.
Kai's eyes filled with something unbearably sad.
"You jumped after me."
The world went silent.
The station lights hummed overhead.
"You tried to pull me up," Kai whispered. "But the train…"
Ren staggered back.
Fragments flickered through his mind.
A scream.
Headlights.
Kai's hand slipping from his grasp.
Then darkness.
Kai's voice trembled.
"We both died that night."
Ren stared at him.
"…No."
"You just… don't remember," Kai said.
Tears slid down his face.
"You've been waiting for the last train every night since."
The train doors beeped.
Closing.
Kai grabbed Ren's hand.
For the first time in months—
Ren felt warmth.
"Come on," Kai whispered.
The train began to move.
"Where are we going?" Ren asked weakly.
Kai squeezed his hand.
"Home."
And for the first time since that night—
Ren stood up.
The last train disappeared into the darkness.
The platform was empty.
Only the flickering lights remained.
And two benches.
Side by side.
Where no one had sat in a very long time.