Please enjoy my little Paperman AU! Maybe leave a review once you're finished? I would appreciate it a bunch!
Herbert Alfred stood on the platform; the next train was due to arrive any moment. Cradled in his arms was a comically large stack of papers. A small breeze played with his hair and Bert smirked to himself when image of all his papers being blown away crossed his mind. Of course it was just his luck that at that exact moment, the wind decided that it was not blowing hard enough and lifted the top paper of the stack into the air… right into the face of the lady unfortunate enough to be standing next to him.
He gasped and started to mutter out an apology when the lady pried the paper away from her face. She smiled gently and looked at the paper for a moment before letting Bert take it. The smallest of laughs escaped her perfectly red lips and her bright blue eyes followed a certain spot on the paper. Bert looked at the paper to find that her lipstick had smudged off onto the paper and left a perfect print of her lips. His eyes darted from the paper to the lady's face and back to the paper. When he glanced back for the mystery lady, she was retreating onto the train that had just pulled up behind him.
Bert stared in shock as the mystery lady was carried away. He could have sworn that she had looked back at him with a sad smile, but before he could be sure, his train pulled up to the platform. He boarded with a bit of a heavy heart. He hadn't even gotten to say hello or introduce himself! Oh what a fantastic impression. Now he would always be that strange man that shoved a paper into a woman's face. He sighed, ah well, back to work it was.
If Bert could described his job to a friend, he would say, ' it's horrid.' He hated his job more than anything in the world. If he didn't need the money, he would have quit months ago. Bert wasn't the type of guy who did well sitting behind a desk, filling out paperwork, and doing nothing else for hours on end. Bert wanted to be sitting out in the park and drawing on the pavement. He wanted to be out selling kites on windy days or doing something equally as fun. Bert wanted to be able to choose his job and do what made the day go by. Unfortunately, he was stuck in this boring, old office room with boring, older men and doing the same boring, old job. It was a wonder he hadn't gone stir crazy already!
The offending stack of papers hadn't gotten any smaller, but Bert could already feel himself going mad. The paper with the lip print sat in front of him and he stared at it. Maybe if he stared long enough, the paper would fill itself out. No such luck on that part. Luckily enough, his desk was right next to a window. It wasn't a very interesting view, all he could see was the building next door. Sometimes the windows would show an interesting scene and Bert would watch and try to put words to the actions. It was like a silent movie, but far less entertaining. Today was different though, because when Bert leaned back to stare out the window, he saw…her.
He shook his head, surely he was imagining things. But there she was, clear as day! The room she was in appeared to be some kind of apartment. She wasn't alone, either. She was speaking to two small children and after a short time, the children ran off to somewhere the window didn't display. The mystery lady walked around the room, tidying up. Bert noticed that her window was open; this was his chance! He flung his widow open and began to wave. Silently he prayed that she would look out the window and see him and that he would get a chance to introduce himself. Obviously fate was working against him because she continued going about her own business. A harsh "ahem" drew Bert's attention back inside, it was his boss. Bert sat down again and glared at the stained paper.
A light bulb went off in his head and he reached out for a paper on the stack. One fold, two folds, three folds, and a few folds later, a paper airplane sat on his desk. One paper airplane perfectly folded and ready for flight. Bert went back to the window and tossed the piece of folded paper gently into the breeze. Then he watched as the paper plane fluttered to the street. Attempt one: unsuccessful. He tried again, failed. Again. Again, again, again, and again. Attempt thirty seven: almost, almost, almost… unsuccessful. The stack of papers was gone and the only paper left was the one that had been flown into the lady's face. Maybe this was his best bet. It was his last chance, after all. He folded the paper into a plane, being more careful with this paper than he had been with any of the others. He went back to the window and lifted his hand to throw it and… Damn it. The wind wrenched it right out of his hand and he watched as his last paper airplane fell to the street below him. A woman who must have been the children's mother entered the apartment and the mystery lady left. So did his chances of ever finding her.
His boss, a large and intimidating man, stalked to Bert's desk and slammed a large stack of papers down. Bert watched as his boss crossed back to his office and slammed the door. Every eye was on him. Bert glanced from the stack of paperwork, to the window, and back at the papers. He chanced one last glance out the window. He watched the street carefully and then saw her. She was walking away… Window, boss's office, exit, window, girl. All eyes were still on him.
He was running for the door in the blink of an eye. He rushed down the stairs and burst through the door. He bolted in the direction he had seen the mystery girl go, wishing and hoping that he might be able to catch up with her. He made a few turns on his own, thought he had seen her and darted in that direction. It hadn't been her. Defeated, he stalked away. His luck was rotten, that was obvious.
Something nudged him, trying to get his attention. It was… was that? It was the paper plane! Oh now he was dreaming. What? Had he been hit on the head and mugged in an alley? And then there were more planes, dozens of them! They stuck to him and attacked him when he tried to brush them away. The force of the paper planes pushed him one way and around a corner. The lip-stained airplane darted around him and then flew off.
He was forced onto a train while being covered in paper airplanes. No matter what he did, he couldn't shake the offensive things. He grumbled to himself the entire train ride.
What Bert didn't know was that that plane was flying to her, the girl the lipstick belonged to. The paper plane found her, too. IT found her and led her on a chase through the city. The plane led her onto a train and then onto a different platform. When she caught it, it stopped moving.
He clamored off the train and onto a platform. In that exact moment, the little paper planes fell off and fluttered into the wind. When he could finally see again, she was standing there. It was her, the mystery girl. She was standing right in front of him, holding the paper plane with the lipstick stain.
"H-hi," he said shyly.
"Hello."
"I'm Bert. Bert Alfred."
"Mary Poppins."