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Nobody can do it like a Steam Train..!
Pearl, a first class observation car, twirled around, admiring herself in the reflection bouncing off of the station windows. Something was so wonderful! She hadn't felt anything like it before.
She’d been done up in a fresh coat of paint, all glossy and shiny, like a star. Her hair had been let down from its usual ponytail, instead tumbling down her shoulders, and her lips were a sweet, inviting shade of pink. They curled up into a smile.
The coach was shivering in anticipation for something, but her problem was that she didn't know what!
All she knew was that it was something good.
“Woo Woo!”
Such a beautiful noise! Pearl giggled to herself. She could see from the reflection of the mirror, someone was looking at her. Someone was staring at her. Admiring her. Someone who couldn't look away— A Steam Engine, who had just pulled in. He had whistled at her!
“Woo Woo!”
It seemed so sudden, but the first class girl could see herself being pulled all over the world, hitched up behind that engine for the rest of her days. Someone strong and warm. The kind of motor that stirred her emotion.
Pearl had been out of circulation, and had lost her motivation, feeling rejected and dejected, all by herself. Wondering if she'd ever find that special someone, to stay behind forever. And then he was on the line!
He rolled up towards her, and Pearl turned to face him. She couldn't quite make out his face—it was obscured by steam. But she knew it was sweet. Maybe he had a cute grin, with a gap between his teeth, and curly hair. Or maybe he was nervous, biting his lip, and smiling awkwardly. Maybe his cheeks were all crimson, talking to a girl like her.
Steam surrounded the pair, warming Pearl right up! Filling the atmosphere surrounding them, like some romantic scene, just the two of them. She felt as if all her passengers were butterflies, fluttering about inside of her.
“I could stare at you forever..” He said dreamily, laughing a little bit. “You’re absolutely divine.”
It might've sounded cheesy, but Pearl almost melted when he spoke. His fingers traced her jawline, ever so gently travelling down her arm, and entwined themselves with her own. Squeezing her hand tightly.
As he did, he let out small whistles. Not as loud or long as his other ones, in fact, rather faint. Like he was embarrassed that they were slipping out, and didn't want her to hear them. Oh, he was cute!
His other arm wrapped itself around her waist, squeezing her tightly. Like the poor steamer was scared someone would come and steal her away from him. But that wasn't possible. Not at all!
Pearl could tell that he was hers, all because he'd whistled at her.
“Woo Woo!” And there he went again! Pearl knew every time he let out that charming sound, he was telling her that she was the one he'd chosen.
“Woo Woo!”
And he could never, ever lose her! All because of that whistle. Even in a literal sense, if she was ever lost, she'd listen out for him. She’d never forget how he sounded. That was the kind of noise that would stick with her forever and ever. Pearl giggled.
“Woo Woo!”
Nobody could do it like a Steam Train. Every Time anyone saw him from now on, shining like the starlight, they'd see a pretty coach coupled up behind him! A picture of perfection, they would be. Together forever.
She loved that rhythm. There was nothing like a train that ran on steam! He was the kind of guy who would prove that you could listen to your dreams! Surely, he'd been waiting for someone like her, too. Dreaming.
He sure knew how to do it. Leaning in, soft as a spider, he freed her fingers, and brought his hand up to her cheek. He began stroking it with his thumb. Pearl's cheeks went a sweet shade of crimson, and she tried to reach out to feel his face through the steam. Pearl couldn't feel a face, but she could feel.. something?
A strange, flaky texture. Normally, the observation car would've pulled her hand away quite quickly, but for whatever reason, she didn't. Maybe it was something about this dream train. When finally did take her her hand away, a strange, reddish-brown stain had appeared on the tips of her fingers.
He laughed gently. His voice sounded sugary to Pearl. She didn't know how to put it any other way.
“You’re so beautiful.”
He twirled a few strands of her hair around his fingers. Leaving her cheek alone. That hand, it seemed was always trying to find something different to do. But the one around her waist wouldn’t. That would keep her safe, and in his arms, for as long as possible. Forever and a day, maybe. Watching him bend down, a little bit, pulling her closer towards him. Pearl went giddy.
The engine tenderly brushing her lips with his own, clouding her vision with the haze. When he kissed her, she couldn't feel the rust anymore, only a delicate face. Her chest felt warm. She couldn't tell if it was the kiss, or if it was his firebox. Or something.
“Woo Woo!”
He broke away from her, and she blinked. Blinked her big, sparkling dark eyes. He sure knew what he was doing. She stood up on her toestops, and went for another kiss. And another.Nobody could ever take Pearl away from that train! Nobody could ever undo it!
—That was, until she woke up.
Pearl sighed, rubbing her eyes. That had been such a wonderful dream, and she'd had to give it up for a reality of races, in which the only steam train trying to compete was risking destroying himself over this. That was what the others said, anyway. Rusty was going to end up in a million tiny pieces on the track, and Pearl, racing with him, would be a laughing stock.
Not that Rusty wasn't cute or anything! With his curly hair, and the gap in his teeth, and the way his eyes sparkled with excitement when he talked about the races, and the way he'd got so, so happy when she agreed to race with him.
But that was ages ago. Surely Rusty didn't still think Pearl would race with him? Surely he thought it was just an offhand comment, and she wouldn't really? The observation car didn't particularly want to hurt his feelings. If she couldn't find him, she just wouldn't race. Or, she'd try them all until she found the best. Either could work, though Pearl reasoned the former might be nicer for Rusty.
She'd have to see what happened, though.
In the end, Pearl did make a decision. She would hold out until she found him. Sorry, Rusty. He'd been cute, but he couldn't match him. Pearl wasn't giving that up easily. She could hold out until she found that engine.
After all, nobody can do it like a Steam Train!