RDP Friday: FLEET

If you take the last train out of Seattle ( the 1511 ) at 9:00 then I am positive you have seen Lorena Dansby.

Lorena introduced herself to me one day when the train was late. She said she liked my new haircut.

I put my hand up to my head and smiled and said thank you and I would have sworn I had never seen her before that day, so for her to mention my new haircut was a bit off putting. From that point on when I saw her I would take a seat as far away from her as I could.

She always sits next to the window across from the door and  doors swoosh open, you can hear her teeth chattering.

I guessed the breeze was too cool for her and during the winter her teeth clicked and chattered faster and harder then they did during the Summer.

I’m not sure what color her hair is, or even what she looks like. Its the sound of her teeth chattering that  makes me turn away from her and I’ve seen people around her do the same.

Something about the sound of her clicking, chattering  crunching teeth  makes the hair on my arms stand up and without fail, a bead of sweat breaks loose from the back of my scalp and rolls right down my spine.

Last Friday as my stop came up, I stood thinking the train had stopped but it hadn’t. The train lurched a second time and I lost my footing.  Just as I caught my balance I looked across from aisle and I found myself face to face with Lorena.

Our eyes locked, the doors swished open and Lorena smiled and as her smile got wider her teeth started to chatter , her lips were parted and I saw her very pointed tongue dart out of her  her mouth and  then she touched her right canine tooth.

” See you.. ” she said through her clicking teeth .

I smiled and as I got off at my stop, I decided that I’d rather crawl the 30 miles to work on my hands and knees then to ever look at Lorena  Dansby and her mouth full of sharp clicking and chattering teeth again.