"There is no moment more alive than the one before something begins." ~ Unknown
Rory and Asper were not there. Other classmates sat together with their friends. He ended up squeezing into the single seat left near Selina's group. Each compartment of the train had five seats.
After settling in, Selina sat down with her friends, and others also came into their compartment. Everyone squeezed in together and played cards and asked each other funny questions. It was a fun atmosphere. Michael didn't mingle much but enjoyed watching from the sidelines.
While playing, Selina's eyes swept over the group and stopped when she saw him. Seeing Michael smile like that, she felt that he was really handsome.
The fun went on, and when it had already been a while after midnight, half of them went to sleep along with Michael. Selina and a few still sat chatting.
While they were talking, Selina's phone rang. She took her phone and went out to the locked passage between compartments.
She picked up the call. It was her mother. When she hung up, her mood was relatively down. She came back and told her friends she was going to sleep.
It was already pretty late so everyone went to sleep. She went to bed but couldn't sleep. She was having fun, but her mother had to ruin it. When she couldn't sleep no matter what, she decided to get up.
Meanwhile, Michael had just fallen asleep when he woke up. He had trouble falling asleep in unfamiliar places, and the sleeping compartments of the train were not the most comfortable. He woke up for the second time. Since he couldn't sleep, he decided to take his AirPods and phone and go out to get some fresh air.
As he entered the passageway silently so that he wouldn't wake anyone up, he was surprised to see someone already there. It was Selina, and she was smoking from a vape.
Hearing the sound of the door opening, Selina was startled and looked back. She subconsciously hid her vape as she didn't want anyone to know she smoked.
She was surprised to see Michael. She remembered that everyone seemed to have fallen asleep. They both felt awkward. Michael closed the door.
"You can keep doing your thing. I won't say anything."
"Thanks..."
Michael then stood on the other corner. He put on his headphones and listened to songs as he looked out at the scenery from the glass. He wished he could open the door and feel the cool breeze.
It was dark, so he couldn't see clearly, but even then, it was beautiful with the moonlight.
As he was lost in his thoughts, he felt a presence beside him and looked at Selina in surprise.
Selina leaned beside him. She smiled and asked.
"Can I have one too?" she asked, looking at his AirPods.
Michael took one out and passed it to her. When Selina heard the song, she smiled and said.
"I was right. You're the type who likes soft songs." Usually, men like pop songs, but Michael was different.
"Yeah," Michael replied.
"It's a good song."
"Yeah."
"Why did you get up so suddenly? I thought everyone was asleep?"
"It's hard for me to sleep on an unfamiliar bed unless I am too tired."
"I see... About my smoking, don't tell anyone."
"I wasn't planning to." It was her private life. Selina smiled.
"So since we both can't sleep, let's do something? I am bored."
"Do you want to watch a movie?" Michael asked.
"Yeah, that's fine with me. Which one should we watch?"
"You think about it. I'll go and bring the blanket from my bed. We can put it down and sit," Michael told her.
"Won't it get dirty?"
"I have a long beige coat in my bag, so I can wear that. I don't feel cold easily. So it's okay."
"Are you sure? I don't want you to be uncomfortable."
"I am sure. You just think about the movie. I'll be back."
Michael went inside. Selina looked at his back in a daze.