Laurey
"I can take the trunk" she offered when they reached the station. "Gotta carry it anyhow"
He pulled it down with one hand. "You never been on a train before? There's porters to help you."
"Oh" she sat on one of the benches, terrified by how little she knew. Aunt Eller had done most of the planning when she confessed her desire to leave. She'd understood enough to not ask questions, just pretended to take Laurey at her word when she said she had to leave to explore more of the world on her own. She'd made the hotel arrangements, bought the train tickets, made it seem like Laurey would have an easy time by herself. It probably would be easy for a woman like Aunt Eller, but for the first time, Laurey began to wonder if she could really go through with it. She could barely get through cooking dinner without jumping at shadows, had never even traveled outside the farm without someone accompanying her. But now she was supposed to navigate a strange city when she could barely get around Claremore, supposed to get a job when she had never done anything on her own before.
Jud sat next to her, slouched low like always.
"I'm sorry I said there was somethin' wrong inside you. I was mad and I just wanted to say what'd hurt you the most. You-you made a mistake, but I can't pretend I don't understand it. 'Least a little bit. You...I guess you loved me a lot do what you did."
"I'm sorry, too. For everythin', you know."
"Yeah" she looked down at her feet. She heard the train whistle, wildly wished for an instant that it was somehow the wrong train, that she could stay on the station forever, balanced between her old and new lives. She could so easily go back with Jud. Aunt Eller would be disappointed, but at least Laurey would still be safe in the little world she knew.
"That's gonna be your train, darlin'." They both rose and, on an impulse, she flung her arms around him. "I'm scared" she whispered, expecting, half hoping, he'd talk her out of it. It wouldn't take much, just a few words about the dangers she was facing, about how she was too innocent or stupid or both to get along on her own, and she'd be back on the farm with him. Back where she belonged. If he'd only tell her not to go, she could be safe again.
"Mrs. Laurey Fry," he held her close, one hand stroking her hair. "You are gonna be just fine. You come back any time you need to, but…but you're gonna be fine."
She smiled and brushed back her tears. He was so serious, so solemn, she had to believe him. She'd wanted to tell him not to wait for her, to leave the farm and take another wife if he had to, some girl who could love him for who he was instead of because he rescued her, but the words wouldn't come. Instead, she nodded.
"All aboard!"
"Right, then" he pulled away and kissed her forehead. A porter took her bags and she presented her ticket before climbing on board. Her eyes flicked around, taking in the plush, red seats, the matching carpet, the new faces—faces of people who only saw Claremore as a minor stop on the way somewhere better, who knew what else there was to see in the world.
She found a spot across from the only other lady traveling alone. They offered each other tiny smiles, and Laurey was comforted by her slight resemblance to Aunt Eller, hoped she could stick by her for most of the ride.
Laurey clutched the armrest as the train lurched forward. Heart hammering, she glanced out the window and saw Jud waving to her. She waved back, and he smiled, breaking into a run as the train picked up speed. He ran all the way to the end of the platform and kept waving. She waved back until she couldn't see him anymore.
"Your sweetheart?" The lady across asked her when she sat back in her seat.
"My husband" she wiped her eyes.
"You're a lucky one. Most men quit actin' like that pretty quickly."
"I know it. He's" she searched for a word, "awful loving."