A Place Among Giants - The Prologue: A Sudden Delay

Lucy was different, and that’s all there was to it.

There was simply no way around this fact. To the common beholder, Lucy appeared as normal as any other 22 year old girl: her figure was a little rounder than most but nothing out of the ordinary, her dress was simple and not the least bit flamboyant, in public places or in the midst of strangers she was terribly reserved, and she faced confrontation and disappointment with such stoicism that would make even the bravest knight look like a sissy in comparison. In fact, Lucy’s appearance was so common and placid that she often went unnoticed. And yet, her whole life up to this point had been filled with one occasion after another that reminded her that she simply didn’t fit in.

Memories of her past life flashed in her mind as quickly as the passing scenes in the train window. The clatter of the wheels and the chatter of the passengers was silenced by the echoes of laughter that filled her ears. With every passing minute, every mile that distanced her from her past, the memories faded like a bad dream. Perhaps running away wasn’t the answer, but it was the only one she had left.

The sudden squeal of brakes followed by a hard jolt brought Lucy back to the present. The train, which had been traversing the almost twelve hundred miles from Mississippi to New York without a single delay, suddenly stopped on the outskirts of Chicago. The quiet chatter quickly turned to commotion as the passengers recovered from the jolt of the train. Men swarmed to and fro with questioning gestures and contemptible glances out the car doors, and women huddled in small groups by the windows sharing confusion and frustration in stern whispers, everyone waiting to be given some excuse for the delay. Several minutes passed with no word from the conductor, and the already little patience of the passengers was quickly running out.

After regrouping herself and her belongings which had become disheveled by the rapid halt of the train, Lucy resumed her position in seat number 46 at the back of the train. She watched the unfolding scene in front of her with mild amusement, unmoved by the delay or the commotion it caused. Lucy couldn’t care less when or how the train got to New York, so long as it got there eventually. She had no appointments awaiting her, no family to meet her, nothing and nobody that would care if she arrived three weeks early or three months late.

Lucy stared out the window so completely lost in her thoughts that when the conductor entered the car she didn’t hear his announcement. Passengers began filing by Lucy and out the rear door of the car. Daydreams of the life that awaited her in the great big city she had heard so much about and visited in her dreams held her hostage from the current situation on the train. Outwardly, she displayed great patience and contentment, but inside she was drowning in a sea of anticipation. One thought consumed her mind and repeated itself incessantly: I will make a life for myself in New York, or, so help me, I will die trying.

To be continued...

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This is the first post, The Prologue, in the "A Place Among Giants" story series.

Stay tuned for Chapter 1, coming soon!

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Author: Emily E. Finke

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