Seat no.10. you’re on the train to Kansas, prepared to play the game you enjoy the most and makes your travel shorter.
Seat no.11. [...]he reads his book. his eyes are moving from left to right in a motion which synchronizes with the one of the train. his moves are confident and powerful with the antagonist gestures of turning page after page and drink his water. it’s a strangely delicious moment in which you feel as if you’re talking, but you’re not talking at all.
as the train goes further, you expect him to get off. somehow, you know that you’re both going in the same direction.
your discrete look becomes persistent. the mute conversation between you and the stranger next seat is a dialogue of answers and no answers about each others’ lives. whether it’s a different type of socialization or just a personal anthropological experiment you do once in a while, the pleasant noise and silence make you feel you actually met someone.
enjoy the dialogue and play by guessing who he is. if he asks you why, tell him he’s your favourite stranger. after all, you’d love to be one’s favourite, although you’re just a stranger too, moving around to find a more comfortable seat. and a new person to engage in your mute conversation.
The game is simple: pick a seat and a stranger. then, enjoy the ride; it makes your travel shorter.
