Tangent Lines- Together once then parted forever
Brittany was running late again.
She didn't exactly know how this time; just that she woke up ten minutes early, yet still found herself running towards the train station in hopes of catching the 7:03 to her job. If she missed this it would be another seven minutes before the next train would come and she would have to run to work. The last thing she wanted was to embarrass herself by falling over as she ran.
Yet it didn't matter how far Brittany pushed herself that morning, she had missed her train and was mad at herself. 'Damn it!' she thought. She sighed and stood to the side, tidying her hair as she caught her breath. She felt the cold morning seep through her body and take rest inside of her. The luminous orange sign coming from the coffee shop window caught her eye and she decided to treat herself to a hot chocolate.
The blast of warmth attacked Brittany as she entered the little shop; the familiar odour of coffee comforted her and she felt less bad about missed her train now. She placed her order and waited patiently as the tired woman behind the counter slowly made her drink. A tinkle from behind indicated someone else had entered the show and Brittany found herself turning round out of curiosity.
A stunning woman sauntered into the room and Brittany found herself looking at all of her. From the top of her silky brown hair to her curves and long legs. The mysterious lady stood next to Brittany and paid for a cup of green tea. No matter how hard she tried, Brittany couldn't look away from her.
The next moment the woman turned to her and made eye contact. Brittany felt her face flush and her lips pull into a smile at the same time. The lady smiled back and Brittany's heart started racing. She averted her gaze quickly and found the lady placing her drink on the table. Before she could say anything, Brittany rushed out of the shop.
As she boarded the train when it arrived, Brittany wondered down the carriage looking for a seat. She held her bag tightly to herself so not to cause any more destruction than necessary. Her slim frame moved around people until she saw a vacant seat and made a beeline for it. It wasn't until she sat down that she realised the person occupying the seat next to hers was the woman from before. They smiled at each other again and Brittany found herself wondering if she should say something. But she didn't, and neither did the woman.
Halfway through the journey Brittany felt a searing hot pain fall onto her leg and splash off. She looked over and saw the lady grabbing tissues and her tea cup tipped over.
"I'm so sorry! I'm usually not this clumsy!" She said frantically as she wiped Brittany's leg and the table. Brittany felt a giggle escape and thought how cute this woman was.
"Don't worry, I usually am." The woman smiled at Brittany's reply.
"Let me guess, you're a human health hazard." The woman had a cheeky glint in her eye and Brittany smiled even harder.
"I did have a warning sign around my neck but I lost it." The woman tipped her head back and laughed. Together they cleaned up as much of the mess as they could in silence. It was comfortable though and Brittany kept making eye contact with the woman and smiling.
"I'm Santana by the way." She said afterwards. Santana, it was a beautiful name and it suited her perfectly.
"I'm Brittany." They smiled again, a lot of their communication was through smiles but Brittany didn't mind. Words never came easily to her.
"Do you get this train often?" Brittany asked.
"As often as I go to work." The words were simple enough but Brittany sensed a hidden meaning behind them. She didn't know her well enough though to press the issue and instead answered Santana's question of how often she caught this train.
"Good thing you were late, otherwise I would never have had the pleasure of meeting you." She winked and Britt reminded herself how to breath. It had been a while since someone had been so confident about flirting with her. Because that's what they were doing wasn't it? Flirting and Brittany had forgotten how much she enjoyed it.
The train pulled into the stop before Brittany's and Santana started rising. Brittany knew they wouldn't be going to the same place but it still disappointed her that they had to go their separate ways now.
"I guess I'll see you around Britt." Santana danced her way out of the carriage and Brittany waved goodbye as the train pulled away. She looked at the empty space next to her now and saw a piece of folded paper on the table. Before she could pick it up a gust of wind from the window pushed it over the table and into a splash of tea. Brittany didn't particularly want to pick it up and try and distinguish it now, it might not even be for her.
The next few days Brittany deliberately waited for the 7:10 train just in case she saw Santana again. She didn't and eventually Brittany realised it wouldn't happen again and got back into her old routine.