(Shoma's pov)

It started out as a feeling, which then grew into a hope.

After the signing meeting was over, I stand up and stretch, ready to go back to the hotel and rest.

I hurry to the train station to catch the next train back to the hotel cause I don't want to pay for a taxi.

I'm so tired.

I don't even notice the train has arrived as I'm sitting by a bench, almost falling asleep.

"Doors are now closing"

My eyes fly open and I run inside before getting squished by the shutting doors.

I make it just on time and have to stand, catching my breath for a few moments as several people stare at me strangely.

Ignoring the stares, I find a corner by a window to lean against.

I rest my head on the window but try to stay awake this time so I don't miss my stop. That would be disastrous.

Just as I'm thinking, my eyes wander to the approaching train from the opposite direction on the other lane.

I look out my window and into the other windows of the other train, looking at the blurry faces  that past me by.

Both trains start to slow down as they approach a curve.

Slow enough that I see her face, staring out her window.
But not slow enough for me to process the panic, excited, nervous feeling stirring in my stomach as we past each other.

My tired, sleepy face change to shock in a single moment.
Through that 3 seconds of eye contact with each other, the moment she saw me I saw a flash of recgonition in her wandering eyes.

Still in shock, I run to the door of the train, impatiently waiting for the train to come to a stop at the next platform.

I have to get out, I have to see her. This might be the last chance I get.

The other part of my brain is saying: what are you doing? This is stupid! Even if you get out, you have to go to her stop, and who knows how long it'll take to get there? Who knows if she got out too to find you?

But my heart is screaming to go.

So I do.

I know this feeling, the feeling I got that told me to try the quad loop at four continents. The feeling of all or nothing.

It's a risk. But it's a risk I'm willing to take.

After all, everything's a risk. Not doing anything is also a risk.

I dash out the doors the moment they open. I run down the stairs and catch a taxi asking him to bring me to the next stop.

As I sit in the cab, doubt begins running through my mind.

What if she didn't get out?
What if she's still on the train?
What if she isn't there when I look for her?

But I push those thoughts away the moment the taxi driver announces our arrival.

Placing the money on the pocket by the front of the car, I race out the taxi, frantically looking for her.

But she's not here.

"LEXI!!" I shout her name, but my heart knows she isn't here.

Feeling my legs burn out, I drop to my knees, panting rapidly, the disappointment washing over me.

"Are you okay?!?"

I turn my head up, the setting sun too bright in my eyes.

"Shoma?! It's me! Lexi. I'm here. You're here!" Her voice changes from panic to desperation to surprise.

"You're here?" My eyes widen as I see her before me.

"Why are you here?" She asks me as I try to stand.

"I-" I pause mid sentence and wonder why I am really here.

"I had to see you again." I answer finally, trying to structure the English sentences in my head properly.

"I thought wishes didn't come true." She smiles.

"You wanted to see me too?" I ask in shock.

"I'm leaving tomorrow. Of course I wanted to see you one last time."

"Don't say it's the last time."

"But it may well be." Her voice resounds with disappointment and it slowly settles in me too.

"I just wanted to tell you, I'm very glad I met you. You really helped me the other day." I sigh realizing that we might never see each other again.

"You're welcome. I'm glad to have the privilege to help my favourite skater."

"I'm...your favourite skater?" I look into her deep blue eyes.

"Yeah. Besides Yulia Lipnitskaya." She laughs.

"Well, I'm honoured to be second to Yulia in your heart." I laugh along too.

She looks down shyly for a moment, before taking a deep breath and mustering the courage to ask me something.
"Are we...friends?" She looks away and shuts her eyes in the most extremely adorable way possible as if it was the most embarrassing thing she's ever asked.

"I want to be." I answer honestly.

She opens her large eyes in surprise.
"..." for a moment she seems speechless, which makes me chuckle, but then she composes herself again, "but you hardly know anything about me."

"Then you can tell me." I smile.

She looks as if she's deep in thought, so I reach into my bag, searching for the pen I used to sign all those autographs.

She stares curiously but doesn't say anything.

"Give me your hand."

She slowly, achingly slowly, extends her right arm out to me, still watching me curiously.

I take her hand and write on it my number and name.

She widens her eyes when she sees it.

"We're friends. I hope we continue to be. You're right, I hardly know anything about you. But I want to get to know you. And as long as you don't mind, I think we can be friends."

She looks to her feet and looks like she's about to cry and smile at the same time.

"Thank you, Shoma." Her barely audible whisper warms my heart.

"By the way, when do you have to get home?"

"OH."

"What? What's wrong?"

"My mom and stepdad are waiting for me at the hotel. I guess I should be going home soon. They let me wander around the city for a while as it's my last day."

"Where do you live?" We start walking to the platform to wait for the next train to come.

"Here? Or as in, my home?"

"Both."

"Right now, I'm staying at Shangrila Hotel. I'm here on vacation as you can probably guess. But I live in Great Britain."

"Oh...that's far..." I can't resist the disappointed sigh in my voice.

"I know...There's still so much I don't know about you either." Her curious blue eyes look up at me, and for a moment my heart jumps.

"Well, I guess we should start with introductions. You go first."

"My full name's Alexandra Catherine Rose Robinson. I'm British. I'll be fifteen in a month, I figure skate too but not professionally. And you're slowly becoming my favourite skater."

"I'm Shoma Uno. I think we're going to be great friends."
I look at her and she gives me the most delighted smile I've ever seen.

"Okay...weirdest thought?"

I raise my eyebrows and then think.
"Mmm, I wonder why Nathan hasn't proposed to Mai yet or invited me to their wedding." She bursts out laughing and I follow.

We can't seem to stop laughing. But that doesn't matter. I haven't laughed like this in a really long time.

"Okay, your turn." I say when I've finally caught my breath enough to stop laughing.

"Uh...isn't it ironic how you have to pretend to sleep in order to actually fall asleep?"

"..."

After another moment of silence, we burst out laughing again. People at the platform give us stares and weird looks of all kinds, but I don't care.
I haven't felt this happy and had this much fun just talking to someone, no, not just someone, a friend, in so long.

We seem to be getting along...
or at least, that's the feeling I got.

...