The Long Run.

I am sure I fell asleep in a field. I am now on a train, I have no ticket, and this train appears to be going nowhere in particular. I rub my eyes, feeling certain I am still in a dream; though this does not feel like a dream, everything appears to be real. I touch my seat, and I can feel the cold leather on the skin of my hands. I run my fingers through my hair, feeling it tickle my hand as I do so. I pinch my skin, feeling the sharp sting of my fingernails as I do so.

I am not asleep, yet I still don't know why I am on this train.

There are passengers on this train, they all talk to each other but nobody notices me. It is almost like I am a ghost to them, though I can hear their muffled voices talking.

The weirdest thing about this train is, even though there are still many vacant seats, the train doesn't stop at any station to pick up more passengers, it just continues moving.

I'm not sure but I think that I am still in Lacey where I live. I look out of the window and I see Lacey Lake, the old mill, Lowstone Bridge and Lamings Farm. All the places in my not-so-big town, where I live.

A child drops a teddy bear in front of my seat. I bend down to pick it up for him. I give it to him, and he takes the bear; though the strangest thing is, he doesn't see me. He returns to his seat as if nothing happened.

The train suddenly picks up speed. There is a flash of light and my surroundings suddenly change.

I am now in the town of Lake-Blue. I stare out of the window feeling confused. I check my surroundings again. I can see Blue Lake, The Needless Tower, and Emerald Bridge.

Though I do not know how I got here.

The train is different now too. Instead of leather seats, there are blue, striped fur seats. The windows have red curtains, and there are wooden tables at every seat.

this must be first class.

Everybody can see me now, whereas they couldn't before.

Two men sitting in the opposite seats to me are playing some sort of card game with strange-looking cards. These cards have a weird pattern of monsters on the back of them. The burly man is wearing a rusted brown jacket, an olive shirt and tie, and grey marl trousers. These are definitely not from my own year which is 2022. The man smiles at me and says hello.

"What year is this?" I ask him, unable to keep the frustration out of my voice.

"It is 1836." The man replies.

"What happened to 2022?" I ask.

The man frowns and shakes his head.

"Shall I call a doctor? Are you feeling well?" he asks.

Before I can ask the man flips a joker, and then the train speeds up again. In a flash of light, the train speeds up, and the scenery change again.

This time I am sitting on an old, musty, wooden bench. The carriages are dark and dank, and they have been painted a very old dark green. I cannot see outside the windows, because they are blacked out with black paint. There are no tables in this carriage and every passenger on the train is dressed in long black clothes, each wearing chunky silver crosses. The passengers stare at me, though I don't know why until I observe my dress. I am wearing exactly what I was wearing when I was sure I fell asleep in the field. Ripped jeans, a pink tank top and a bomber jacket. I guess these passengers think that I am weird.

None of these passengers talked to me, they just stare and talk to each other. I overhear a woman say,

"Saline the female demon granted me three golden talismans today and that means I can leave the train for at least three hours when we reach our destination."

I have no idea what this woman is talking about. I feel like I am sleepwalking through both times that exist, and times that didn't or don't.

A male passenger looks at the woman and says,

"Well make sure you come back on time, or you will lose your destiny."

Lose your destiny?

What's that all about?

The woman just nods and refuses to speak.

A man in a smart black suit walks up to me. I don't know how he manages to see me, but I do know that he is the only one who can.

"Do you have a key to your ride Miss?" he asks.

Key to my ride? What is that? I wonder.

I don't have to wonder for long as a silver key appears out of nowhere on the table in front of me. The man nods then picks it up and places it in the lock on the black box that he is carrying.

"What year is this sir?" I ask.

"It is 1846," he replies then disappears.

It seems that every time I ask this question, the same thing happens; the train speeds up, then there is a flash of light and I am thrown into a completely different time and place.

This time, I am sitting in a very posh carriage. There are blue velvet curtains at my window, the seats are cushioned with royale red cushions and in front of every seat are posh mahogany tables.

A woman wearing a long blue dress and a very expensive blue hat approaches me.

"Excuse me! May I sit here?"

I nod my head, patting the empty seat next to me.

"I'm Latimah," The woman informs me.

"I'm Layla," I respond, trying to hide the confusion in my voice.

Latimah smiles at me. She talks about her life as a princess in her country Rosing. She speaks of kings, queens, princesses and castles. Her story just frustrates me further, and I have no idea what she is rattling on about.

"Time to leave," Latimah tells me.

Before I can reply, the train speeds up, and there is a flash of light.

I am now in another different time and place.

I feel dizzy with all these changes from one year to the next. I am still sure I fell asleep in that field, though everything feels as real as it does when I am not sleeping.

I a now on a train that is full. Every single carriage is full of people singing and drinking.

"Excuse me!" A man says as he runs past trying to get to the automatic doors that lead to the toilet. He nearly knocks me out of my seat.

A woman opposite me is trying to deal with a toddler who is upset by the noise. I really feel for her, it's so loud in here and her tiny toddler ears must ache with the sound.

Suddenly I get a shock.

The train stops!

"Welcome back to the town of Lacey. We hope you enjoyed your travel through time."

Everybody aims for the doors, all in a hurry to get back to their normal lives.

I then remember,

I did not fall asleep in a field. I boarded a time-travelling train.

I smile, time travel is unheard of in modern times.

I attempt to get off the train, desperate to get home.

However, the doors shut before I can leave. The train speeds up, and there is a flash of light.

I am now sleeping in the field where it all started.