I exhale a sigh of relief and exhaustion as I finally slump onto the couch after a long day. Its not easy being a small town girl in the big apple, maybe book publishing isnt for me.. I miss home and my baby sister who has been staying with my grandparents since my mom died and my dad left us. I feel so lonely. Maybe I should just head back to my hometown, Altoona, Pennsylvania. I decided I needed a break from this hustling and bustling city asap. On a whim, I gather up a backpack of necessities: phone charger, underwear, clothes, a romance book (corny i know, what can i say, im hopeless), and my journal. I run down to the subway, rushing to make the last train to Altoona. As I board the train, I notice a mysterious hooded and masked figure sitting across from me, breathing deeply. He looks like he is trying to remain calm. I would have sat further away from someone as intimidating as he seems to be, but there were no other seats on the crowded train. Again, I sneak a glance at this stranger to find strong eyebrows and surprisingly warm brown orbs staring right back. I look away quickly, heat rising to my cheeks and also somewhere else. I risk one last glance to those brown eyes and find they are shimmering? I can barely see the top of his cheeks under his mask, but I could almost swear they were turning red. I dont even want to know what my face is revealing about how the stranger has made me feel.

As we venture further away from the city, I have fallen deeply into my romance novel. Enemies to lovers always pulls me in and it feels good to forget my worries and my surroundings for a while. The intercom pulls me from the midst of an epic battle scene,”Next stop, last stop, Altoona, PA!” I look up to see the handsome stranger waking from a nap. He looks exhausted. I wish he would pull his mask down so I could see how truly handsome he is under there. He locks eyes with me again and suddenly I am very aware of the fact that we are the last two people on the train. Under the pressure of his intense stare, I start to warm up again. I am not used to attention, especially from strangers who are so mysterious and attractive.

It becomes too intense so to break the silence I stutter, “Are… are you from Altoona? I don’t think I have seen you before, I mean I definitely haven’t seen you before haha I would recognize eyes like yours anywhere” Shit shit shit that was so embarrassing. I try to recover, “Umm I mean what are you doing in Altoona?”

To my relief he laughs and it is a beautiful sound. As quickly as his laugh began, it ended, his eyes narrowing in on me for a minute and then softening again. “I just needed to escape— I mean take a break.. from city life for a bit, if this is the last stop I guess thats where Im getting off. I have never heard of Altoona before. Are you from here?”

His voice was raspy, deep, and warm. Reminded me of the main character in my fantasy romance novel. He is a rebel from the oppressed colony of Dweisencha, coming of age in a society that wanted to beat him into submission. But he rose in rank in the military to assassinatethe tyrant king and avenge his mother. A true hero.

I shake my head to clear these thoughts and respond, “Yeah, I grew up here. Although it hasnt really felt like home since my mom died and my dad left” I realized I divulged too much when nothing but silence stretched on and on. I couldnt bring myself to meet his eyes but when I finally did he looked like he was tearing up. “Im sorry,” I said. “I didnt mean to trauma dump on you” He remained still and asked how she died. “Cancer.” I said. “She had it for 2 years and then her insurance company started denying her claims. Soon it was too much of a financial burden on my dad so he ended up leaving us. She died 1 week later.” As I looked up at him I watched a tear fall underneath his mask. He straightened his spine and cleared his throat. Sounding determined, he said, “Im so sorry that happened to you. I.. I understand. I cant say why or how but just know. I understand.”

I nodded, not wanting to press him further. The train finally slowed to a stop and the mysterious stranger and I got off. It was only a short walk from the train station to my grandparents apartment complex. He turned to me, “Do you know where I can find a late night bite around here? I am starving”.

“As far as I know the only thing open 24 hours in this town is the McDonalds. I know we arent supposed to go there right now because of the boycott, but I wont judge you if you do.” His eyes lit up and I assume he was smiling down at me. We shared a laugh. “Its actually right across the street from my grandparents apartment building. We could walk together, if you’d like.”

“I would really like that”. He said. We walked most of the way in silence, but it was a comfortable silence. When we got there we stopped and looked at each other. I didnt want to say goodbye. He was so handsome and intriguing and sensitive, who knew men like this existed. The look in his eyes told me he felt the same. It was me who broke the silence again. “Well here we are. Im Y/N by the way”

“Y/N, thats a lovely name. Im….” he hesitated.. “Im Luigi.” He blushed, “not as beautiful a name as yours.”

I joked with him, “well I have always had a thing for Italian plumbers, so youre in luck” He laughed. “Y/N I will never forget your kindness tonight. I needed this. I dont know when I will be treated with kindness again, Im not sure my future is looking bright” He reached out and tucked my hair behind my ear, sending a shiver down my spine.

I looked at him confused. He looked away, “I have said too much. Goodnight, Y/N” Leaving me confused and speechless, he turned on his heel and walked into the McDonalds, stopping in the doorway to look at me one last time. Strange I thought.

I walked across the street to my grandparents where my baby sister and grandpa were already asleep. Grandma let me in and showed me where she set up the cot in the spare room for me, the room with the perfect view of the McDonalds. As I laid down in bed I had a hard time falling asleep. A dark browed and brown eyed man was occupying my thoughts. Suddenly I saw flashings of light behind my eyelids and when I opened them I saw that the lights were red and blue. I sat up on my cot and looked out the window to see 7 cop cars, 2 swat vehicles, and 2 news crews surrounding the McDonalds. Several officers were escorting someone out of the building. I put on my Warby Parkers and gasped. It was Luigi. What could he possibly have done? I opened the news app on my phone to see the headline “CEO KILLER CAUGHT - LUIGI MANGIONE” I dropped my phone and looked back out the window. I could have sworn he looked up at me at that moment, his mask finally off revealing a chiseled jawline and gorgeous smile. I was right, he is handsome. Very very handsome. And a hero. He killed the tyrant king.