The little boy, five years old, took hold of his father's hand, awed by the immense size of the train that moved west to who knows where, a huge snake of metal that hissed and rumbled as it sped by on the railway.
"It's a diesel train," the man said.
"What's that mean?" the boy asked.
"It means that the train runs on a certain type of oil."
"Like what Mommy sprays on the cooking things?"
"Not exactly – it's not used for cooking. It's a special type to make the train go."
"Don't the fluffy clouds do that?"
"No, that's what comes out of a steam train. People working inside the train have a fire inside a steam train, and they put wood into it. That produces the clouds and makes the steam train run."
"Oh." The little boy thought for a minute. "I like this train better."
And from that day on, trains were his obsession. He loved them better than the usual trucks and cars that his friends enjoyed. The woo-woo of trains from a station they lived close to became his favorite nighttime sound. As he grew older and learned more, he soon began to wish that he could be a stationmaster. His love for anything fast combined with his love for trains, and the wish developed into a daydream about train races. Train races weren't invented yet, but he could start one, and soon they would be all over the world, and he would become the most famous stationmaster in history!
"...Happy Birthday to you!"
He ripped the colorful wrapping apart one year later, the popular song playing over and over again in his mind. His parents watched as he lifted a plastic casing, molded to contain two little toy engines. One was sleek and built for speed, with yellow and white colors. One was black with silver studs, ancient but still dependable. These days, he was prone to giving a train a name – if he didn't know what the name was – out of habit. He decided he would give these engines names, but decided to do it later. It was the first train, the diesel, that really interested him, and he played with it more often than the other train, leaving it to collect dust on a shelf unless he needed it. There was also a few other packages that had a wide variety of trains, including but not limited to freight trains, coaches, another steam train, and even a little red caboose that he often lost and found in the oddest places.
When it came to his ninth birthday, he discovered a certain train that looked quite different, more modern as if it had been created in the future, with red and white as its colors. Five slightly smaller trains - or were they trucks? - accompanied it. Their colors were basically the same as the very first train with only a few differences to tell them apart. He looked at what kinds of trains they were: electric. The biggest package contained a very long railway track in pieces that could be connected. He was ecstatic with happiness. Now he could finally be in charge of a train race!
He hugged his parents tightly, thanking them over and over again. He couldn't have asked for a better ninth-year birthday gift.
His mother opened the door that night, smiling as she heard him commenting as he played in his bedroom, but knowing he had to stop for now.
"Alright, honey, it's time to go to bed," she told him.
"Aw, Mom. Just five more minutes?"
"No. You need to put those trains away and go to sleep."
He reluctantly obeyed. "But how will they run without me?" he asked as she pulled the covers over him.
She paused at the genuine concern in his voice. "I'm sure they'll be fine. Don't worry – they look as though they can take care of themselves." She planted a kiss on his forehead, humming a soft tune as he closed his eyes. "Goodnight, my wonderful nine-year-old son."
"Goodnight, Mom. I love you."
Not long after she had turned off the light and left, he lay still, thinking about his new toys and his dreams of being a racing stationmaster. He murmured almost inaudibly to himself as he finally fell asleep.
"This is Control. This is Control..."
AN: In case you're wondering why I haven't developed him much, it's because Control is supposed to remain a mystery in the musical, unless a director wants him to appear physically, like they did in South Africa in 2013 for the first time.
The colors of the toy versions of Greaseball, Rusty, and Electra are based on a German Starlight Express racing game. You can choose to be one of them, and the game shows how the actual train would look like beside the human character.
Thanks for reading! Reviews are appreciated! I will reply to them.