It’s midnight, and I am the only passenger left on the train. The conductor walks down the aisle and whispers, “Your stop doesn’t exist anymore.”
I look up and smile at the conductor, the kind of smile that says, "You must be kidding me, sir."
"Brace yourself," he adds, with a smile that looks smug. I can see his crooked uneven teeth, which are stained yellow. I look around, and I confirm that I'm completely alone with this strange conductor and captain, and I have no idea where I am headed.
"Try not panic!" I say softly to myself, trying to keep my calm. "Oh my, Oh my, I'm gonna dieeee!" I think it way too loud that the conductor looks at me and lets out a terrifying laugh that sounds like a snort.
"Are you going to sacrifice me?" I ask, standing from my seat, panic rising and my heart beating more than the drums I witness in lingala nights. "I'm going to die, ain't I? Oh God, I haven't even tasted the burrito I bought last night! I will never even get to wear the dress I had gone to take measurements for!" I shout fear after fear, flailing my arms like I'm pointing them out.
"Calm down, Miss," the conductor says, sterner than I anticipated. "You won't be needing all that list," he continues softer than before. "Just sit tight, will ya?" he asks, cocking his thick face to the side.
I feel the air sucked out of my lungs, as I collapse on the train's hard seat. I bury my face in my hands, wishing that when I peek out, all will be gone. "Oh God of Isaac, Jacob and Moses, please wake me up from this nightmare, I beg, I will be a good girl from now henceforth," I pray to the Creator. As I whisper 'Amen', I remove my hands only to be met by the conductor, whose breath is suffocating.
Get ready, he says. Get ready for what? I ask, confused. You'll see, he says. I take one breath. Then another. On the third, I see it.
Out of the blue, or rather out of the darkness, a portal opens. Suddenly there is glitter all around. As the train progresses, it disappears. The captain and the conductor transform into fairies. Suddenly, I am surrounded by fairies who flutter their wings around me. They speak a language I can't grasp. I stand there, looking on in awe, eyes too wide open, mouth agape that can swallow a baby fairy. A few seconds later, I get shrunk by a fairy who keeps on waving her magic wand in front of my dazed eyes.
Welcome to the mystic world, she says, introducing herself as Tinkie.
...
Thank you for reading❤️!
