For a moment, they sat in silence, the hum of the train filling the space between them. Then, at the exact same moment, they both opened their mouths to speak.
They stopped, stared at each other, then laughed.
There was a twinkle in his eye, and Fern was taken by surprise, feeling a flutter in her stomach.
‘You go first…’ they chorused in unison.
Then laughed again.
Before either of them could continue, the train ground to a halt, but there wasn’t a station in sight.
A murmur of confusion rippled through the carriage as people glanced through the windows. They were in the middle of nowhere. Then an announcement sounded through the carriage.
‘We are experiencing a power failure. Engineers are on their way, but we anticipate a significant delay. Please remain on board. We apologise for the inconvenience and will keep you updated.’
A collective groan filled the carriage. Fern’s stomach sank. Of course, the universe would throw this at her today. She exhaled, shifting slightly in her seat as the train remained stubbornly still. She glanced at Daniel, who seemed entirely unbothered by the delay.
‘Well, that’s just perfect,’ she muttered, folding her arms.
Daniel shot her a grin. ‘Look at it this way, we’ve been gifted more time to chat. Fate’s doing us a favour.’
She arched an eyebrow. ‘You think being stranded on a train is romantic?’
‘Absolutely. A forced proximity trope in real life.’
She couldn’t stop the smile on her face and glanced towards his left hand– no ring– but someone as good-looking as him was bound to have a girlfriend.
Just at that second there was a loud rumble. Embarrassed, Fern glanced at her stomach. She had only grabbed a coffee at the station and was hungrier than she’d realised.
Daniel smiled and opened his rucksack, pulling out a neatly wrapped sandwich. ‘Should have been for my lunch, but it sounds like you need breakfast and I can’t have someone going hungry on my watch.’ He gave her a warm smile that made her stomach flip more than the hunger pains.
He offered her half the sandwich. ‘Cheese salad. Homemade.’
She hesitated for only a second before accepting it. ‘Thanks. That’s… really nice of you. Only if you’re sure though.’
‘I’m sure.’
Taking a bite of the sandwich, she nearly groaned with delight. ‘This is really good. A sandwich always tastes better when someone else makes it.’
He smiled at her and gestured to her mouth, and she quickly wiped the mayonnaise from her lip.
When they’d finished the sandwich, he retrieved a KitKat from his bag, unwrapped it and snapped it in two. Without a word, he handed her a piece.
Fern took it with a small smile, their fingers brushing briefly.
The old woman opposite them let out a wistful sigh. ‘It’s so lovely to see such kindness. I met my husband on a train,’ she continued, a gleam in her eye. ‘Euston to Lichfield Trent Valley. I was twenty-four, and so was he. We laughed the whole way. Neither of us wanted to get off. So he didn’t.’ She smiled; a soft smile, full of memory. ‘He stayed with me the whole journey. Then the rest of my life.’
Fern pressed a hand to her heart. ‘That’s so beautiful.’
A beat of silence passed. Then…
‘But that’s not…’
‘We’re not…’
They spoke at the same time, their words tumbling over each other. The old woman simply patted her handbag with a knowing smile. Fern’s heart was doing something entirely ridiculous to her chest as they both stopped speaking and gave each other a smile.
‘Hear that? We’re a picture of romance,’ teased Daniel.
