“What other thing?” Raya said.
The woman creased her high forehead. “When did you board the train?”
“Very recently.” Q cast a glance Raya’s way to see if the umbrella was still shielding her.
“That explains it.” The woman smiled. “Otherwise, you would have known that this place is where passengers come to get the latest gossip. Not that anything exciting ever happens on the Elsewhere Express, but when you’re stuck in one place for eternity, you take what you can get.” She let out a laugh that reminded Q of birds chirping. “I’m Han, by the way.”
“Q,” he said.
Raya gave Han a small wave. “Raya.”
“If you’re interested in the gossip here, you’ll have to toss a few secrets of your own into the fountain in exchange. The conductor likes to say that everything on this train is complimentary, but things aren’t free just because you don’t know what its price is.” The light in Han’s eyes flickered for the briefest of moments. “Allow me to demonstrate.” She cupped her hands and whispered into them. She opened her fingers, revealing a coin on her palm.
It was a clever trick, but nothing Q had not seen nor had time for. He fidgeted, his eyes on the door to the exhibit area.
“This is how you toss your secrets into the fountain.” Han offered the coin to Q.
“Thanks. But we’re actually in a bit of a—”
“It’s a one-sided coin,” Han said. “Have a look.”
Q lifted a brow and took the coin from her. He held the coin between his thumb and forefinger and flipped it around. It vanished. Though he felt the coin’s weight and shape, he could still see Han’s grin through it. His eyes and fingers argued with each other, each insisting the other was lying. Q flipped the coin back, restoring its silver face.
“Clever, right?” Han said. “This side carries my secret, which, to be honest, I’m not sure even qualifies as a secret. But returning a book a day late to the train’s library is the most exciting thing that’s happened to me in a while.”
“And the other side?” Raya said.
“It doesn’t exist yet.” Han tossed the coin into the fountain. It twirled in the air, disappearing and reappearing as it spun. “Not until you make the exchange.”
The coin landed in the pool with a small splash. The rain twinkled like fairy lights.
“Hold out your hand,” Han said.
Q stuck his hand out from under the umbrella. A raindrop fell into his palm and turned into a coin upon touching his skin.
“That’s the coin’s missing side.” Han gestured to the desk. “Give it a twirl so we can see what secret I got in return. Hopefully, it’s something more exciting than an overdue book.”
Q sent the coin spinning over Han’s desk. The rain swirled aroundthem, blurring into a moving wall of water. Han shut her umbrella. Q followed her lead. Colors spread over the liquid wall like paint in a cup of water, creating a mural of a dimly lit bar inside a giant lotus flower. A man stood behind a granite counter, mixing drinks.
Raya gasped. “It’s Aki.”
“It really must be my lucky day.” Han beamed. “Aki always has good secrets.”
Aki poured a petal-pink liquid from a cocktail shaker into a tall glass embossed with the Elsewhere Express’s eternal knot. He reached for a silver tin, its contents pasted on its side with a black-and-white label:Broken Promises. Aki lifted its lid. Gold powder shimmered inside it. He sprinkled it into the cocktail and topped the drink off with a fresh cherry blossom. The rain wall collapsed with a splash. The silver coin stopped spinning, melted into a tiny puddle, and floated off the desk in colorful drops.
“All secrets surface.” Han opened her umbrella. “Before they rain down on you.”
Rain poured. Q scrambled to open his umbrella and hold it over Raya’s head. She huddled closer to him, a raindrop dripping down her cheek. Q stopped himself from reaching over and wiping it off. Being tethered made their bodies feel like one, blending the slightest discomfort and pleasure. Raya doubled the warmth that flowed through Q and made every step he took lighter. And even though he was aware that this was merely a temporary bond forged from necessity, there was no convincing his heart that it did not pump for two nor his mind that the magnified awe it felt about the gallery was not entirely his own.
“I always suspected Aki used a pinch of powdered broken promises in his Sakura Surprise. It adds a nice kick.” Han smiled. “Now, let me get your tickets to the exhibit before you change your mind.”
“Why would we change our mind?” Q reeled from the idea of secrets falling around him like rain. “Is the exhibit that bad?”
“I couldn’t tell you. I’ve never seen it. That’s why I asked to be assigned here. I was hoping that one day, someone would come along and tell me all about it.”
“Why don’t you just see it for yourself?” Raya said.
“See it?” Han stepped away from the desk, shaking her head. “No, no. I couldn’t do that.”
