The Short Boy lent in to kiss Melbourne Train Girl goodbye on the cheek. She misjudged his direction and they almost met in the middle. Almost. Melbourne Train Girl laughed at the akward moment that followed. On the second try he found her cheek, and then they parted ways.

The Short Boy was different to the Tall Boy. The Tall Boy was loud and vivacious. A big personality who threw himself completely open to the world, leaving nothing to mystery. The Short Boy on the other hand was quieter, and perhaps a little shy. Melbourne Train Girl had to unwrap him slowly, layer by layer; peeling away each newly discovered secret to reveal another.

The Short Boy didn't make Melbourne Train Girl feel as though she had just left a tornado the way the Tall Boy did. Every time she saw him he left her even more intrigued than the time before.

Tonight there had been some akward silences, but he had always filled them.

Now, the thought of the hints of South Africa in his voice made Melbourne Train Girl's stomach flip unexpectedly. She closed her eyes on the train and imagined he was sitting next to her, talking.

Then she imagined kissing him. She wondered what moment would lead up to that first kiss. Melbourne Train Girl was getting too used to drinking a little too much wine and letting the alcohol make that moment. It was easier that way.

But was it more fun?

Perhaps they would stand on a tram together. And perhaps the tram would jolt, and he would catch Melbourne Train Girl's shoulders to stop her from falling...

Or perhaps they would go indoor rock climbing like a few weeks ago, near closing time when the gym was empty, just the two of them. He would belay her down much too fast, and then offer his arm to help her up from where she had landed...

Or maybe he would walk her to her door, and as he laughed at the plastic plant her mother kept hanging in a basket on the front porch he would tell her he had had a lovely evening, take her hands in his, and leave just one simple kiss on her lips.