With caution he turns on his back, slowly turning his head to the man at his side. By the looks of it, James is sound asleep with his hands tucked underneath his head and silent breaths passing his parted lips. His heartstrings pull when he spots thered lining James’ eyes and the dried tear tracks on his cheeks. If only he could make it easier for him.
He lays back with his head on the pillow, eyes glanced up to the ceiling as he thinks about what they could do today. Breakfast has passed, but he figures they’ll be able to attend lunch and sneak out some bits and pieces to have for dinner. Tonight’s another buffet night, and even if he’s able to convince James to join him, he figures it’s not the best choice right now.
His hands flex where they’re lying on his chest now, fingers balling into fists when James makes a soft sound and the urge to pull him closer overtakes Gabriel. The only thing preventing him from doing so is the barrier of pillows acting as a literal hurdle keeping them apart. There’s another sound, a small hitch in James’ breathing and then he’s slowly blinking open his eyes. Gabriel has to divert his gaze, knowing that the longing is showing on his face as clear as day.
If only he could gather the courage to actually tell James about his feelings. “Morning,” he whispers instead.
“Morning,” James whispers back in a similar fashion. With sleep still filling his features, he stretches and closes his eyes again for a brief moment. Not wanting to break the spell of the tranquility, Gabriel slowly turns on his left side so he’s facing James. “Didn’t hear you come out of the shower yesterday.”
It makes James smile, even if it’s a small weak little thing. “You were out like a light. Even left all the lights on.” There’s a little giggle at his own joke, and Gabriel will take it as the small victory that it is. Might be best to let the day play out, give James the opportunity to bring up yesterday on his own terms.
Gabriel smiles, a soft little thing that he’s found he only does around James. “We missed breakfast.” His friend pouts. Gabriel is utterly endeared. He reminds the other of lunch and that’s that. The soft silence returns. James twists around a little to grab his phone from the nightstand, but rolls back onto his right side so he’s still facing Gabriel.
Gabriel can’t find it in himself to bother with his phone, content to listen to the sound coming from James’ as he abruptly scrolls through several videos. He tries not to linger on the fact that James is deviating from his schedule by lingering in bed like this, and the severity of what that could mean.
*
Lunch is a quiet affair, but that’s mostly to blame on the both of them still being somewhat groggy from sleep. The restaurant is packed and once again Gabriel’s content with the privacy the booths offer. They’re driving through mountains, with snow-covered tops and rolling hills. There are frozen lakes meandering through them and as Gabriel digs into hissandwiches, he follows it all with his eyes. The different kinds of meats and cheese provide a nice change in between the elaborate lunches and dinners from the last few days. Sometimes all you need is something as simple as an open-faced sandwich, with some fruit and coffee on the side.
“So,” Gabriel begins, bringing the sandwich up to his mouth, “what did you want to do today?” Across from him James has just finished constructing his own lunch with the ingredients that are in between them. He shrugs. Gabriel chews deliberately, thinking of how to cheer James up.
“Oh, I know. We’ve still got that deck of cards, could do that this afternoon?” There’s a teasing smirk on his lips when he adds, “Or we could play Monopoly again.”
A look of horror passes over James’ face, who’s quick to dismiss the idea, “No! No Monopoly. Cards is fine.”
Gabriel grins to himself, turning back toward the window, as the man across from him shudders in mock distress, happy to see some life return to James’ being.
26 [James] Trollveggen, Norway
December 18th
The sounds of iron screeching across iron snaps James out of a pleasant, hazy dream. He jerks upward, alarmed by the loud noise and promptly tumbles out of bed when the train comes to an abrupt stop. He scrambles for something to grab hold of, but the only thing he finds is his duvet as he thuds against the carpet. “Ow,” he groans when his head grazes the edge of the nightstand. The softness of the blanket manages to cushion the blow a little, but he’s sure there’ll be some bruises on his arms and legs, nonetheless.
From above him, he can hear Gabriel jerking awake as well, “What happened? James?”
“Down here,” mutters James, pushing himself into a sitting position. With barely any time to think, Gabriel’s head pops up above the edge of the bed, with panic shining in his eyes. “Are you okay?”
James accesses the situation. Other than the slightly stinging sensation on the back of head, there’s nothing else that smarts. “I think so, just startled.”
Gabriel reaches out a hand, offering leverage for James to pull himself up with. “Don’t have to tell me twice. What happened?”
James swallows, startled confusion starting to bleed into worry. “I don’t know. Do you think-”
“I’m sure it’s nothing,” Gabriel tells him, leaning back toward his side of the bed. “We’ll be-” The crackling of the overhead speaker interrupts Gabriel, and James holds his breath waiting on what’s to come. His chest constricts with anxiety.
“Ladies and gentleman, good evening. Our sincere apologies about the abrupt emergency stop. We do hope nobody’s injured and nothing’s broken.” At this, Gabriel’s eyes snap toward James, who tries to give the man a reassuring smile.
“Unfortunately, we just got word of an avalanche happening about twenty-five miles out. It’s resulted in a thick covering of snow on the track. Our current location is the safest place to wait for the authorities to clear it and give us the green light to continue. Due to the unknown level of danger the site of the avalanche could provide, we do not have any timeframe on when we’ll be able to carry on withour journey.”
James feels his body fill with panic. Stuck on the hillside of a mountain wall, in an area that’s apparently known for its avalanches.
“Hey, you’re okay.” Gabriel reaches out to him, his hand landing on James’ shoulder. “We’re okay. You heard him, they’re already looking to clear it.”
The speaker crackles again, once more coming to life. “We can assure you that we’re safe. As soon as there are any updates, we’ll be sure to share them. Everyone on the train, including myself, hope that you’ll be able to rest while we wait this out.”
Then the silence returns. It feels deafening in its sudden appearance and James blinks. This is one of his worst-case scenarios coming to life. If he had to choose between getting stranded in one of the cities due to a malfunctioning part ofThe Adventureror getting stuck on the tracks due to snow, he’d rather be stranded in an unknown city. At least that would offer an opportunity of getting back home.
He feels the panic break through his effort to keep it at bay. Sweat lingers on the base of his neck and his hands start to become clammy. In the darkness of the cabin he feels trapped, literally and mentally. His eyes are trained on where his hands are fidgeting with the covers, trying to keep his breathing even. His mind can only focus on the things thatcan go wrong.
