I hope you all are enjoying BOO.
Chapter 21:
After a while of restless sleep, I wake up with a large headache. I look around and see the sun hasn't risen yet. I get up, and open the door to the hallway. I look for a bathroom and see a sign showing me where to go. By now, my headache has woken me up fully and I am aware of just about everything; the plush red carpet beneath my shoes and the large windows letting me see the landscape move by quickly.
Once I use the bathroom, I should feel better, or that is what I think. When I'm back in the room and trying to sleep with a huge pounding in my head, I take a small bite of ambrosia, hoping that magical food will get rid of the pain, but it doesn't.
I stay in bed, rubbing my temples. The next few hours are a blur of pain, sleep and rolling in the small bed. Another couple of hours later, I get out of bed and get up.
Silently, I close the door and see the sunrise through the windows. All around the sun is a collage of colors ranging from dark purple to pink and yellow. I'm so stunned, I just stand in the corridor. A few seconds later, my mind wanders and I start moving. I go to the other carriage of the train and see a fully decked out bar with snacks and water. An attendant waves to me and I sit down.
"Hello. How much does everything cost? I forgot my money in our cabin," I ask sheepishly. My hair must be very disheveled and my clothes probably all wrinkled.
"Don't worry, as long as you bought a master suite, everything is free. Besides alcohol, but I'll need to see an ID for that," he smiles. He doesn't seem tired or even remotely worried to see a lone kid wander in at dawn.
My headache comes back to full force and I have to put my head on the counter of the bar. "What is good for a headache? I think I have pretty bad motion-sickness." I moan between my arms.
He starts shuffling around and I hear him pouring things into a concoction. "I'm Josh, what's your name. Try to get something else on your mind. Where are you from?" My mind starts racing, nervous that he is asking so many questions. The headache goes down a few notches. I can feel the dagger against my skin, covered by my jeans.
"Pietro. I'm from Chicago. We went to Bismarck for a short summer trip," I reply, still a little apprehensive. "So what are you making me?"
"Oh, this is a mixture of raspberry juice, sparkling water and some lemons. I have this when I is first a train bartender. I got so motion-sick that sometimes I have to stop working and just sit down." He slides the drink across the bar and I take it in my hands.
Between sips, I say, "This is great. Thanks." I drain the fizzy drink and head back to the room. "I'm going to try to get some more sleep. My headache won't be bothering me anymore. Thanks."
"No problem. Come back if you want snacks or something to drink," Josh calls back.
Once I'm back in the room, the sun has gone up quite a bit. My watch tells me it is half past seven. When I open the door, I see May looking out the window.
She turns when she hears the door opening and smiles when she sees me. "Hey, how long have you been awake?"
"Not long, half an hour tops. I went out because I have a headache." I then dive into meeting Josh and him giving me the drink.
"I wouldn't mind having something to eat. I am starving." She replies, in a whisper, so we don't wake Reed up. She gets up from the small chair near the window and heads toward me and the door. "And you should fix up your hair," she smirks when she passes me to go out of the door.
I try and hide the blush spreading across my face. After a few seconds, I go out and go back to the bathroom. No one else seems to be on the train besides us, which puts me on high alert.
When I come out of the bathroom, my face is washed and my hair is partially tamed. I go back to our room and see that now all three of us are awake. Reed is dressed with his thin chest plate under his plain t-shirt. May has a donut in one hand and a mug with something steaming in it.
"A donut? Really. You haven't even have breakfast," I say, disgusted.
"This is my breakfast," she retorts. She takes a sip of her hot drink. I make a puking motion and Reed laughs.
The rest of the trip is different, a big contrast to I sit down on my bottom bunk and relax. Reed and May walk in and out every once in a while as I doze off.
May shakes me awake saying that we have to get up. I jump out of bed, adrenaline waking me up in a heartbeat.
"We just have to leave the train, not fight a dragon," May jokes. I try patting my hair back down and trying to iron out the creases on my shirt with my hands.
A disembodied voice tells us that there is two minutes until we are at union Station in Chicago. Reed, May and I pile out to the corridor and walk toward the exit. I have my backpack while May and Reed both have a coke in their hands. "So am I the pack mule of this journey?" I say drily. "You better have gotten food and drinks for me."
"Yea, we got you covered. I put some stuff into the-," he stops and leans forward. In a whisper, he says, "Magical backpack."
May rolls her eyes. "The worst thing that would happen would be that they would think you are crazy." She pauses. "Maybe that would be a blessing, actually."