“That’s what you said at the platform, isn’t it?” Tara had to will herself to speak, pulling the words out of her throat. She didn’t trust herself to speak in complete or correct sentences in her third language right now. “What does it mean?”

“You are beautiful.”

Tara’s heart exploded. She reached for her book of poems, needing an anchor, so she wouldn’t float away—a million sparks in the dark night. “Shall I read you some Rumi?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “I’ll have to do sight translation into English. Forgive me if it’s a little rough.”

Jimmy leaned back against the cushioned wall beside the bunk. He nodded.

Tara quickly opened to the page where she’d left off, a narrow, faded red ribbon marking her place. “‘You have aroused my passion, your touch filling me with desire. I am no longer separate from you . . . I beseech you, don’t let me wait.’” Her skin absolutely burned. My God. What was this? Tara gently replaced the ribbon and placed the book safely on the table. Jimmy drew himself up as she leaned toward him. A riot of thoughts ran through Tara’s mind. Some of them were warning lights. Others were the white-hot lights of stars falling to earth. But they were all a jumble, really. And, for once, Tara led with her heart.

They kissed.

And it was slow and warm and everything and nothing she could have imagined. And it was fleeting. And it was eternity. It was a miraculous place without borders or words or wars. When they pulled apart to, at last, draw a breath, Tara bent her head, covering her eyes, an impossibly large smile spreading across her face.

Jimmy leaned back and pulled her toward him, so she rested her head on his chest. She could feel his heart beating. She felt the warmth of his arm as it rested across her shoulders. The train rocked back and forth as it clicked and clacked over the track. Dots of light like embers in the dark night sky rose up and faded in a blink. Tara’s eyelids drooped to a close.

The train lurched forward, pulling Tara and Jimmy out of their repose. At first, Tara jerked her head up, then lay it back to rest when she saw Jimmy’s smiling face. His body was so warm and his arm enveloped her perfectly. A second later, she flew out of the bunk.

“What . . . what time is it? What have I done?”

Jimmy leaped up and pulled her into a hug. “It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s still night. Look.”