Page 105 of Leaving the Station

“We should go back out there,” I whisper to her after a while. “Aya’s probably wondering where we are.”

She groans but stands up, mostly naked. I turn away, and she laughs. “You can watch me get changed,” she says. “If you want. I mean, you saw me...” Her face reddens, and I continue looking away out of sheer embarrassment for what she might have said next.

When I turn back around, she’s wearing her turtleneck and pulling her dress over her head.

I shiver as I step out from under the warm blankets, then throw my clothes back on. Before we emerge into the hallway, Oakley pushes me against the metal door and wraps her arms around me.

“What’s this for?” I ask, laughing.

“You’re just very cute,” she says into my shirt.

I pull her closer before I reluctantly let go, squeezing her hand as we head into the hallway.

It’s the last time we’ll walk from the sleeper car to the observation car to see what’s going on, to spend time with the random, wonderful people we’ve met on the train. But that thought doesn’t fill me with the same dread that it has in the past. We’ll get off the train, and maybe, if I’m lucky, I’ll still have Oakley. Or at the very least, I’ll have the memories, the party, the slow dancing.

And I’ll have new things to look forward to as well.

When we step between the cars, someone shouts, “Surprise,” and Oakley and I both startle.

I’m sure they must be trying to surprise someone else, but then I look down, and Aya’s there, smiling up at us.

“Come on,” she says as she guides me and Oakley to the dining car.

The first thing I see is the crowd of people. Then there’s the turkey and the pie and the stuffing laid out over all the tables.

“What’s going on?” I ask, turning to Aya.

She shrugs as she sits at one of the booths and pats the seat across from her, motioning for me and Oakley to sit as well.

When I look up, Clint and Virginia are standing there, hand in hand.

“Aya came to us a couple of hours ago,” Virginia says. “She wanted us all to have a big dinner together, since we’ll be apart tonight.”

Oakley and I turn to look at Aya.

“You did this?” I ask her.

“I had to do something for you guys since you gave me the best birthday party ever,” she says as she pulls a huge slice of pie onto her plate and digs in, despite the early hour. “And I didn’t make the turkey, by the way. That was Mike.”

I laugh at the fact that Aya had to clarify that shedidn’tcook a turkey on the train, then turn to Mike, who waves awkwardly. Clearly this was going to be used for his Thanksgiving dinner. I have no idea how he’s kept a turkey from going bad, and honestly, I don’t want to know.

Some things are meant to remain train mysteries.

“You didn’t have to repay us for the party,” I tell Aya. “It was our pleasure.”

Oakley rubs my back, and I lean my head against her shoulder.

“We did,” a voice says from behind me.

I shift in the booth so I can turn around, and Aya’s mom is standing there, hands in her pockets. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for my daughter,” she says to me and Oakley.

“And you were right.” Nanami directs this part to Oakley, though she glances at Aya as she says it. “I should’ve told Aya everything from the start.”

“You should’ve,” Oakley says harshly. When I squeeze her hand, she adds, “But, uh, thank you.”

“Aya’s the coolest,” I say to Nanami. “And if you ever need a babysitter in Seattle...”

“Yes!” Aya shouts, bouncing up and down. “Please, please, please, please?”