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Hanna had expected the lunchtime commute to be a lot more quiet. The university was supposed to be on holiday for some religious festivity.
She grunted in annoyance as a gaggle of noisy students cut their way ahead of the line to enter the train first and claim the whole row of seats for themselves. One of them even accidentally elbowed her in the chest, and she got pushed further to the back.
Oh, Founder. If they were going to play dirty then so would she, but Hanna decided otherwise at the last minute as the train car quickly filled to bursting and the staff signaled for the doors to close.
She took a step back, and accidentally collided with the person next in line. "Sorry, Sir. I—"
"Hanna Campbell?"
She blinked in confusion, before her eyes crinkled in recognition. "Elwin Rosfield! It"s been a while!"
"The students get more and more unruly with each year. I"ve half a mind to report them to the discipline board, but..." Elwin trailed off as he watched the train depart, before looking back at Hanna. "Anyway, I didn"t know you worked in the area. How have you been?"
Hanna smiled; Elwin had always been protective of her since they were young teenagers. That was over fifteen years ago, now. "I"m doing great, thank you. I was supposed to meet one of my professors here for my dissertation, but..."
"Ah, yes. Founder"s Day. Sorry to hear that." Even the way he frowned was as endearing as ever. She shook her head to hide the chuckle that escaped her lips. "It"s all right. I can come back another time."
That said, she wouldn"t be able to come back until next month, she thought to herself. She had to file a leave from the office to attend this meeting, so today was pretty much wasted already. Hanna felt her disappointment return with a vengeance, and it wasn"t just because of her cancelled errand.
Elwin had sensed it, too, of course; they did know each other too well at some point. He stepped forward, their knuckles brushing as he stood beside her in the line. "Let me accompany you home today. Where do you get off?"
"I—" Hanna was caught off-guard when the next train arrived. More passengers spilled out and rushed in once the doors opened, and all the jostling pushed Hanna closer into Elwin"s personal space. He protectively put an arm around her as they weaved their way through the crowd, until they finally got inside.
They were still holding onto each other when the train began to move, but then again there wasn"t any space—very strange for a lunchtime commute. Not that she was complaining, Hanna thought to herself as she turned away from Elwin"s chest, broad and warm as she remembered it all those years ago. Today is not the time, she chided herself.
"Well?" Elwin prompted her, and she looked up at him on instinct. Age seemed to have treated him well; he looked even better than she remembered, even with the wrinkles on his forehead and around his eyes. In her eyes he was gallant as ever—even more so than before, now looking more like the knight he had fancied himself to be when they played all those make-believe games before.
Hanna was embarrassed at the crimson blush that must now have crept onto her face, but she had nowhere to hide except in Elwin"s chest, and there was no way she was going to do that. "I, um... Yeah. I get off at Central Station."
"Great!" Elwin"s face brightened considerably at her response. "There"s actually a coffee shop a few blocks away from it. My daughter-in-law runs it. Would you like to come?" The arm he held around her now felt warm and comforting—and familiar—and the tension Hanna felt until then evaporated all at once. Well, that was quickly resolved, but she expected no less, of course.
Hanna nodded at him. "Of course, Elwin. We have a lot to catch up on—fifteen years of it."
"That we do," he intoned gravely as if it were a mission of utmost importance, mimicking the make-believe knight once more before breaking into a soft laugh. And Hanna laughed along with him, letting the moving train rock them back and forth until her face was close to Elwin"s chest once more, and everything felt all right.