I told him that I was out of it because I had lost my woman. He sighed and shook his shoulders.

“Nothing hurts worse than a broken heart.”

I looked out the window. The buildings and desert and fences and lines blended together to make an ugly face, scowling at me. He reached his hand over.

“James.”

I told him my name and shook it. He nodded.

“I’m not gonna say anything to you about it, brother, because I know how it feels.”

“Thanks.”

He pulled out this yellow pack of cigarettes with a blue eagle on it and shook one loose. He held it between his teeth and shook one loose for me.

“Have a smoke. It’ll calm your nerves.”

“I’ll be alright,” I said.

“Don’t worry, man. It’s a natural cigarette,” he laughed, “but I know, it’s still sucking the corporate cock, regardless.”

He lit up and shot out a cloud against the windshield. It hit the glass and divided into two arms that reached out of the windows and vanished. He looked at his lighter and set in on the dashboard.

“Fuck it,” he said.

We drove through a lot of the night. Somewhere in Texas he pulled up to a drive-thru and ordered. He looked at me.

“You hungry?”

“No.”

He got the food. The smell sickened me. I hadn’t eaten in days. He was fumbling his burger, trying to shift.

“Son of a bitch. Hey, man. Do you have a license?”

“Yes.”

“Drive a stick?”

“I’ll drive.”

We parked and switched. On the freeway he ate and kicked his shoes off.

“Don’t fall asleep.”

“No chance.”

He leaned back in his seat.

“I know what you mean. Thinking about what she’s doing, about the fucker she’s with, wondering why, fishing for reasons. Your stomach’s all goofy, your mind’s racing, part of you has been torn out and frozen. Fuck! I’m so glad that’s behind me now.”

I nodded, “To make everything you just said worse, the day after it ended I saw her kissing the guy from her car.”

He closed his eyes and clenched his fists, “AAAUUUGH!”

“And the fucker had a ponytail.”

“AAAUUUGH!”

The road was dark, feeding the white lines into my forehead. He put his feet up on the dash and looked over.

“Hey, man. I got two words for you: fuck her.”

I didn’t say anything. He dug in the paper sack.

“Here. Have a fry.”

I took it and had a small bite. It screamed all the way down to my stomach. It bounced back up and almost came out. I fought it down. I chucked the rest of it on the freeway. We had just crossed into Oklahoma. James signed off.

subway train

so crowded you aren't sure

if it's your feet holding you up

or if it's just the bodies surrounding you

she turns her face to move her nose

away from the man

who smells like he hasn't washed in

at least two months

she finds herself nose to nose with

hand gripping the silver bar

trying to ignore the stickiness

trying to avoid being washed away

turns his head to look around

he finds himself nose to nose with

him

her

"hi"

the subway slows and they gravitate backwards

it's a bit like falling sideways

unprepared she falls into him

awkward but not entirely

unpleasant

her

"this your stop?"

him

"not sure. is it yours?"

her

"not sure."

him

"where are you headed?"

her

"away"

him

"me too"

her

"at what speed?"

him

"huh?"

the subway train jerked into motion

"there are two types of going away

running away

walking away

one is considered cowardly

the other is probably

the bravest thing a person could ever do"

"I see."

he thought for a moment

"a bit of both, I think."

"I see."

him

"how fast are you going?"

her

"at a sprint"

him

"can I come with you?"

her

"if you can keep up."

doors open

they flood out

into empty space

"I ran away too."

The girl stares at me as she says that, and I wonder why she had.

"I understand."

How could she? I had never seen her before.

"I know why."

I was on the verge of asking why she thought she knew everything about me.

The girl's pretty green eyes meet mine and she continues.

"You want to clear your head. To leave your past life behind. You want a fresh start, short of yelling parents and stuck-up friends. You need someone that knows. That someone is me."

"You don't know me." The words slip past my lips, and I look away.

"You-"

"I do know you. I just told you the story of your own life, a story that you did not want to face."

I feel her gaze, and I turn back to look at her. "You are right. But how?"

The train sways to a stop as the girl says, "I can read the faces of people and know their story. If I meet their eyes, I know what they dearly want. You just have to watch."

She starts to the door, but I stop her. "Can I come?"

She meets my gaze once again. "But that is not how your story will go."

The girl hops off the train, and I know that I will never see her again.

But she had helped me start my new life.

I see a boy across the train

It's the middle of a winter night

And there's no one else on the train

He has a bag beside him

And I wonder what it's for

Or if it's the same reason as me

I want to ask him why he's here but just before I can

he gets up and walks to me

He takes a seat right beside me

Then slowly takes my hand

And says these three words to me

"I can understand."

I ask him what he means by that

He says "Don't you see?

I'm on this train for one reason, I ran away from home. If anyone can understand why you did it too, it's definitely me. "

He has an understanding look

And he's still holding my hand

It's when he kissed my lips though

That I took his hand too

Maybe we are two depressed kids

That couldn't find love at home so we decided to be runaways

And found love in each other

And never let it end