*Thunder of Wonder

Intro: I recently got to ride a subway. I don't often ride a train of any sorts but every time I do I am amazed by the sheer noise and intensity of a train coming and leaving a station. I hope to write more about subways in future stories.

The tunnel glowed with an eerie red and blue light. A great noise thundered all around. Paxton watched a small boy cover his ears and look around anxiously. Nothing came down the tunnel but Paxton looked at the ceiling and watched the trembling beams above. Paxton thought back to the first time he'd first ridden the subway. The feeling that the whole tunnel would collapse with a single train. The noise that sounded as if a dragon roared. A wind that pulled at the hair and clothes, tempting you to look for the oncoming train.

Paxton watched the young boy, his hair in the breeze edge towards the yellow line looking down the tunnel. His face was bright, eyes full of wonder, and breath catching in his throat. The boy was looking for the source. For a moment Paxton wished he could give the boy what he wanted. A dragon. A troll. A living machine. A giant snake. Something other than a plain train.

The train came around the corner and Paxton watched the boy. The smile didn't wane. The excitement didn't waver. The boy waved and the driver waved back. Paxton chuckled as the boy blew a kiss to the driver and climbed on the car with his mother.

As Paxton went back to work, sweeping the concourse, he closed his eyes and listened to the sound of thunder echo away from the platform station. The boy was a lucky one if he could claim his father drove the trains that caused wonder in both children and adults alike.