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of nice legs. Jim took a look at them, enjoying his isolated vantage point.
    The woman, on the other hand, took the ticket from between her lips, and while doing so she looked at Jim. She saw his fixed stare toward the glass. It looked funny, so she smiled a little.
    Sometimes you don’t see the full picture in the reflection.
    Her face appeared on the glass as she sat down. She was still fiddling around in her purse.
    At this moment, Jim’s expression changed from that of a man secretly observing a beautiful woman to that of a man slightly puzzled.
    He took another look at the reflection.
    She was closing her purse.
    After a brief period of hesitation, he looked up and said, “Now it dawns on me why everyone is running around with flowers. Today is Mother’s Day, isn’t it?”
    “Yes, it is,” said the woman with a sigh and a conversational frown.
    Jim sighed and said, “Now I’m relieved. I knew it was Mother’s Day—I just wanted to hear you speak. It may sound stupid, but I just asked so I could hear your voice. You look exactly like my brother’s girlfriend, and I have only met her once, just for a minute. So I wanted to hear you speak to check and see if you’re her or not.”
    The woman only looked at Jim, not saying a word.
    “Don’t get me wrong. I just thought I had to make sure you weren’t his girlfriend. You know, it would have been pretty awkward if you had been her, and I would have been sitting here just looking out the window.” Jim stopped, trying to find better words. “See, it would have been pretty funny if we both had just sat here looking out the window; and then gotten out at the same station—still not speaking at all—and then walked to the same house, just a couple of feet away. You know, without speaking a word or anything. And then, right at the door of my brother’s apartment, we would have realized that we should have known each other, and that we at least should have said a few words. That would have been pretty embarrassing,” Jim said, and laughed nervously, indicating that such a situation would be an awful spot for anyone.
    The woman held her gaze, but there was some amusement in it now. Then she started to smile.
    “I mean, it would have been pretty awkward, don’t you think?” asked Jim nervously.
    The woman thought about it for a moment. “That’s about the funniest thing I’ve heard today,” she said. “But why are you relieved I’m not your brother’s girlfriend?”
    “I’m just not that good at small talk, that’s why. And here in the train, sitting right next to each other, you’re almost forced to say something. It becomes pretty awkward. You know, sometimes it’s hard if you’re supposed to talk and you can’t think of anything to talk about.”
    “It probably is. I’ve never thought about it that way,” said the woman, still amused.
    “Yes,” said Jim, who apparently couldn’t think of anything else to say about it.
    The train kept moving on.

18.
    On the island at about the same time.
    Lou was climbing a rock, sweating. The sun shone on his tanned arms. It was a hot summer day, and there was little wind.
    Liz already stood on top of the rock, looking down. “Come on, what’s up?” she called down.
    “Look, I want to enjoy the climb. If you go up all in a hurry, it’s no fun.”
    Liz laughed, rolling her eyes. It seemed she was in high spirits from being better at something. “Let’s meet at the top,” she shouted down, and disappeared out of Lou’s sight.
    He climbed a little faster.
    Liz hid in a cleft at the side of the small platform.
    Lou looked down; his sight began to blur. He focused up again, gathered courage, and continued to climb. Finally he dragged himself over the edge. He looked around but couldn’t spot Liz. Then, standing, he looked up.
    He still couldn’t see her.
    All of a sudden he heard someone laughing—it came from the crevice, of course.
    Lou looked around. He seemed a little insecure.
    Liz jumped out