The station was practically deserted before 1:00 a.m. when the taxis had ferried all the remaining passengers to their destinations. I thought I could take refuge inside the station for the night but it was closed immediately after the last train passed through. It would only be opened a few minutes before the first train leaves at 4:41 a.m.

Alas, I had no other choice but to occupy the only bench located at the taxi stop. Somehow I thought that I would be able to lie down and sleep when I could no longer stay awake. Meanwhile, I took a copy of the Italian edition of the Reader’s Digest to pass the time away for I knew it would be a long night before the station opens. Nevertheless, I didn’t feel too apprehensive and lonely to be alone but I couldn’t concentrate on my reading as I had to look around and be on my guard.

Fortunately, it didn’t take too long to see a backpacker to appear from nowhere at such a peculiarly unconventional hour. I had to look at his direction several times to see if he were real or just a mirage as my tired and drooping eyelids could be playing me a dirty trick. If I didn’t pinch my arm and slap my face, I would have easily taken him for the prince charming who could still be on a wild goose chase in search of Cenderella and the 7 dwarfs after the midnight ball. On the contrary, I took it with a certain relief and joy as a blessing in disguise to have somebody around that I could trust and keep me company, just in case.

When he formally presented himself, I almost jumped on my feet to welcome him with arms wide open. But I was too tired and spent to oblige. Instead I offered him my hand to shake his and invited him to occupy the other half of the bench with my famous toothpaste ads smile. Deep in my thought, I could have said: “if you’re looking for troubles, you came to the right place” instead of the usual expression: “make yourself at home!”

He told me that he came with the last train from Verona and that he missed the bus to the youth hostel. His name is Ryan and comes from Los Angeles. He’s on the second leg of his European tour as he already went to Germany, Switzerland, France, Spain and Morocco. He plans to tour Italy before proceeding to Greece and possibly Turkey and then on the Balkan states before catching his plane back home in Frankfurt.

He was too nice to accept my proposition to read his hands. How surprised he was when I recited him a long litany of the many memorable and pleasant moments that he went through as I traced systematically the lines of his hands with the tip of the handle of my eyeglasses. I got him so interested that he even asked me to teach him the basic on the significance of each line. He tried to read mine, but I doubt strongly if he could ever learn it as a beginner in one sitting without any practical exposure to it at all.

From my own experience as a backpacker when I was young, I knew pretty well that he hasn’t eaten a regular decent meal during his trip. So, I took out my doggie bag and offered him the fried rice and egg salad that I prepared earlier for the trip and shared it with him. At first, he hesitated but took some bites until he almost ate the half. I was very happy that he liked and appreciated my cuisine.

Afterwards, I related him how I ended up in Europe. In the course of my narration, he remarked that I shouldn’t make my story short because we had all the time before the station opens. I told him how I got completely pissed off with our highly corrupt political system and my obsession of getting out of the country for good before I’d go banana completely. I told him that thanks to the French Government, I finally made my dream come true that triggered a series of happy events in its wake.

I tried to take a nap on the bench but I was so uncomfortable that I could hardly put myself to sleep immediately. He was too kind to offer me his pillow, but it didn’t help a lot. When the station opened, we rushed to the first platform and occupied a corner where we could be safe to be left alone. As soon as he rolled his sleeping mattress, I just dropped down like a sack of potatoes. How I felt so comfortable on my back that I slept instantly. I woke up to the sweet sound of his snoring some 20 minutes before our departure for Milan. He woke up a few minutes later to buy his ticket at the counter. As the trip would take us an hour, we were too tired to admire the countryside and the landscape and tried to catch up with our sleep.

How I wished that I could have stayed longer with him even for a cup of cappuccino or a light continental breakfast immediately after we arrived in Milan, but I was so in hurry to reach my final destination that I had to catch up another train for a long haul towards the Italian Riviera by the Adriatic. How much I hate such a sad parting! It would only make me cry if I stayed a minute or so. So, I just wished him a pleasant continuation of his trip while I shook his hand tightly and promised to email him as soon as I’m back in Brussels.

¶ 1:22 PM