Eva's Valentine's Day Choices

Hi, this is my entry into the Literotica 2022 Valentine's Day Story Contest and is a long romance, but please don't drop the story and claim, "The story is in the wrong category." You'll need to read more to see if it makes sense.

~~~***~~~

Friday, 7th January.

Eva sat high above the railway tracks on the cap of the road bridge's central supporting leg's buttress. She could avoid looking down by leaning back on the high stone balustrade, which hid her from passing cars and pedestrians behind her. Unfortunately, by leaning back onto the stone, it also added to the cold attacking her body.

Despite being mid-morning, the January sun barely warmed her, as it peaked over the local housing estate and hills beyond. Even with her thick coat on, she was freezing, with the cold seeping up out of the concrete into her backside and back. Her sketchers were great for driving her car and shopping, but were useless for keeping her toes warm whilst dangling in fresh air.

She looked across at the unresponsive hooded stranger she was sitting alongside. Their scruffy, black hoody pulled over their head, obscured any chance of recognition with their hands thrust deep into the hoody's front pocket. At the bottom of their ragged jeans, a pair of Doc Martins dangled in the air, not caring about the drop-down to the ballast and tracks below.

As yet another train thundered under the bridge from behind without warning, Eva jumped in shock, to then watch it heading to the south coast or possibly London. Eva's leggings slipped on the concrete, forcing her to scoot and creep herself back up the slope, not wishing to fall. Her silent companion's jeans kept them inert on the same sloping ledge.

Still, the silent stranger alongside her showed no emotion, unmoved. Eva was now regretting her choice to be a Good Samaritan. She could have continued walking, like all the dog walkers on the path alongside the railway tracks, but no... She had chosen to look up and saw the stranger perched on the ledge.

Maybe they were just a devoted train spotter and not about to throw themselves to their death, but Eva couldn't turn her back and walk away. She couldn't risk the possibility of having that guilt on her conscience when maybe she could have made a difference.

In the distance, she could see an express coming towards them. This was worse than the ones that emerged from beneath the bridge unannounced. She could see this one approaching, anticipating the diesel screaming past and the blast of hot air. Worse still, was that the stranger could also, timing their leap to their deaths in front of it.

Have I left it too late?... Jeez, if they jump with me here, the police could think I pushed them off, but if I hold on to them, they could pull down to my death with them.

Then she had an idea... Maybe not her best one today, but now she was sitting there, cold and committed. Reverse psychology works in novels, but would it work today?

"Hi, it's me, Eva, again. I'm a little scared being up here, with the trains being so fast and coming so close. Do you think you could hold my hand?"

At last, the hoody shrugged its shoulders and turned. Eva was now full of apprehension. What are they going to look like, dishevelled, tattooed with piercings and teeth sharpened to points?

Too late now girl, you just had to climb over the balustrade from the path and interfere.

She needn't have worried, as the hoody turned to expose a small, ashen, feminine face with deep blue eyes framed by jet black hair, which made their face seem even smaller and paler. Thin pink lips smiled and a small thin hand emerged from the cavernous pocket, as hoody shuffled closer to Eva.

"It's okay... Hold my hand if you're frightened. It'll be okay. I'm used to the trains, and they're nothing to be scared of."

The hand reached for Eva's, but felt like ice, shocking Eva, who grasped it with both of hers, trying to rub some warmth into hoody's limb. The hand was soft, but the voice was croaky, and despite looking feminine without makeup, Eva wouldn't want to second guess Hoody's gender.

Eva's gaze returned to the approaching train, unable to tell if the driver had seen them, but was still going too fast to stop. Eva wondered if she should try to signal the driver, to show them that they were okay, but at that speed, any signal would be a blur.

As the express thundered passed, a hot diesel smelling wind from the exhaust washed over them, to be followed by a larger blast of an icy wind. Hoody held Eva's hand, patting it reassuringly, smiling at her. Then, out of the blue, their arm let go of Eva's hand and wrapped around her shoulders to give her a warming hug.

"What's that for?"

"Umm Err... I wanted to reassure you, hoping you feel safer now."

Cheeky bugger... I'm up here to reassure them.

Eva tried to see if hoody's eyes showed signs of drug use, but not being familiar with drug use, she wasn't too sure what to look for.

Are the pupils supposed to be tiny dots or overly large? Their eyes are narrow, but the winter sun is low and in our eyes.

"I do feel safer, thanks." Maybe I can keep them talking.

"Do you normally ignore strangers, and then give them a hug?"

"Oh... No, sorry, it was a spur-of-the-moment thing, as you looked scared"

Yeah, scared you'd jump or I fall off.

Eva nodded and smiled back.

"Yeah... I was thanks. Are you okay up here on your own?"

"Yeah, I often sit up here on my own... They can't see you from the road. No one looks up from the path below. I like to sit and watch the trains, more often in the dark."

Hoody returned to their thousand-yard stare to the end of the railway tracks in the distance, but then, as if they'd remembered something long forgotten, they turned to Eva.

"If you're scared of trains... Why did you come and join me?"

Hoody caught Eva unawares and bang to rights. Her face must have told the story.

"You thought I was going to jump?"

Eva felt her face blush and cheeks burn, despite the cold. There was no avoiding it and hoody knew it.

"Ah... Er... Yeah, hi, I'm Eva."

Eva held out her hand, hoping she could help this stranger.

"Yeah, you've told me, several times. No one ever notices me, but you thought I was going to jump?"

"Well... I've dropped my car off for its MOT annual inspection, at the garage over there, and I didn't want to sit in the waiting room. I was going to walk to the old playground over the back."

Eva pointed over her shoulder, meaning the other side of the bridge.

"I used to play there as a kid and now they're going to build new houses on it, so I thought I'd go and maybe take some photos, for old time's sake. So took the old ash path."

Eva pointed down to the path next to the railway, which also ran under the bridge, where they could see a passer-by's head bobbed along over the top of the overgrown bushes.

"But unlike all the others, you looked up... And cared enough to come and sit with me?"

"You don't mind?"

"No, it's kind of sweet and very brave... Thanks"

Hoody hugged Eva, to peck a light kiss on her cheek and their spare, even colder left hand shook Eva's.

"Hi, I'm Mandy... No... Er... Mark."

Eva saw confusion and hurt in the Mandy-Mark's eyes, as he or she returned to staring out along the railway, releasing Eva's shoulders and returning their hands to the hoody's pocket.

"Not sure?"

Eva wondered at how big a Pandora's Box she had opened.

"Uhh..."

Mandy-Mark pulled their other hand free from the hoody's pocket and tugged the hoody's neckline open, gathering a T-shirt's neck to peer down to their chest.

"Ahem, Mark today... I don't like being Mark..."

The stranger's voice deepened, a little more masculine, but Mark looked deathly saddened by the discovery.

"Why don't you like Mark?"

Please, don't let Mark be a mass murderer.

"He's sad..."

Again, Eva regretted her judgment at volunteering to be the Good Samaritan.

"So I assume you like Mandy?"

"Yeah..."

Mark's eyes lit up.

"What do you like about Mandy?"

"She's pretty... She's nice... She wears nice clothes... I feel happier."

Mark looked directly at Eva, to smile, and Eva could see what looked like a light smear of lipstick in the corner of his lip.

Is Mark suffering from some form of psychosis, a split personality or just a depressed, lonely cross-dresser?

Desperate to change the topic, Eva piped up.

"Well, now I'm here, do you mind if I keep you company?"

"No, it's nice to have company, thanks..."

Eva still wasn't a hundred percent of the stranger's gender with their hoarse voice, although it dropped to a softer tone sometimes. Not as if he was practising a softer voice, more as if he were testing a coarser, masculine voice.

"You been here long?"

Eva's arse was so cold it hurt and the wind chill was freezing her to the bone.

"Dunno..."

"Do you live local?"

"Yeah, over there..."

Mark nodded to the older housing estate, to the right of the railway, fed by the link road next to the MOT garage. This hopefully gave Eva the opportunity to talk Mark away from their freezing shelf.

"Wouldn't it be warmer back home?"

"Nah... Heating packed in... Yesterday I think... It's freezing, so I came out for a walk..."

"Do you know what's wrong with your heating?"

"Dunno, the thermostat went blank, no readout... Busted."

Mark shrugged, looking helpless.

"Is the Thermostat Wi-Fi or wired to the heating? Mine is a Wi-Fi connection and the batteries can go. Is your thermostat on the wall, or can you move it around?"

"Yeah, it's like a little digital clock. I moved it to sit by the front door, so it cheats it into thinking it is colder, so I stay warmer watching TV."

Mark's eyes brightened a little.

"What if I come home with you? I could look at it. It may just be a duff battery, the same happens to mine."

Eva tried to grasp at any straw to get them both off the freezing cold ledge.

"Come on then, let's get back over the wall and we'll see if we can fix it."

Eva hoped this was their ticket to somewhere warmer.

"Ooo wait, another train is coming."

Mark fidgeted in excitement, nodding to the distant horizon where another express train was thundering towards them. Both his hands grasped Eva's, and he even patted her knee to comfort her.

This time Eva was sure the driver was watching them, with a co-driver holding a phone in his hand. The noise and warm exhaust blast, followed by the icy blast, encouraged them both to move.

Mark rose creaking, with stiff cold limbs, having to shake and stamp his legs to get the blood flowing. His hand came down to hold Eva's and pull her up, struggling to rise on freezing cold limbs. Now standing, Eva was a little shorter than the concrete balustrade, realising that the climb back won't be easy. Mark cupped his hands together, gesturing for her foot to step in.

"It's okay, I'm used to it. I can easily scramble back over on my own. Step in and reach up, but don't fall backwards."

Eva stepped into his hands, placed her hands on his shoulders, and straightened up. Mark lifted her up, and she easily flopped over the top of the balustrade, swinging her legs over to stand on the more sheltered side. She looked back in time to see Mark following her, swinging his leg over and jumping down.

The two ignored the passing cars as they stamped their feet and shook themselves, trying to force the blood back into their stiff, cold bodies. Now Mark was standing alongside Eva, who at five foot six, could see he was no taller than her. Despite his baggy hoody, he looked petite, not helped by his black hair peeking around his face and his long thin fingers, with long nails.

"Is that better?"

Eva nodded, and retrieved her phone from her pocket. Checking the screen, she'd missed a text from the garage confirming her car was ready. She feigned more warming up as she pondered on what to do now.

Mark pulled his hoody off his head, flicked his dark flat hair around that hung just short of his shoulders. Hair that had the look of someone trying to do something with short hair, that they're trying to grow longer, but wasn't there yet.

His long thin fingers brushed through his hair as he shook his head, then flicked the fringe out of his eyes, flicking his hair back behind his ears, as any woman would.

Looking at his petite face, Eva noticed his feminine button nose. Not unknown in men, but with other hints of feminine features added to her confusion. Eva had heard about facial feminisation surgery for men, but not enough to guess if he'd had it done. If he had, it wasn't in the last few months. If so, why would anyone that committed still dress in baggy, masculine clothes and maintain a male name?

Along with his broken voice, this confused Eva, unable to label her new friend, whether a lost soul, lonely single male in uncertain times, a pan-sexual, or a cross-dresser trying to come out or what? Who knows? But she had nothing better to do today, and Mark didn't seem threatening. Maybe he just needed company and some heating to warm him.

Eva lived alone and thankfully with the onset of Omicron, could work from home but being Friday she had no teams meetings or client calls booked today. Her day was largely free and tomorrow was the weekend.

She certainly didn't want to walk away and find out either Mark or Mandy had returned later and had done the unthinkable, despite his denying it. She resolved to continue being the Good Samaritan.

"Have you had breakfast, Mark?"

Eva's MOT slot was at eight-thirty and Mark had been there long before. So it was doubtful.

"Err... I don't know... I remember it was dark when I left home..."

"My car is ready. How about we get a Mackey Dee Breakfast each, go to your house and see if I can mend your heating?"

Mark checked his scruffy jean's pockets and looked horrified.

"I've not come out with any money, sorry."

"Mark, two breakfast rolls with coffees will only be a couple of quid. It's not a problem."

Mark didn't look convinced.

"How about I buy us a breakfast roll each and you brew us up a cup of tea at home?"

Mark seemed happier with the barter system and nodded happily in agreement.

"Right, come on then, we'll have to pick my car up at the garage."

Before they had taken a step, Mark's chilly hand held Eva's, his other gripped her arm as they walked together. Anyone watching would have thought they were two close girlfriends walking rather than two strangers.

"Do you have a mask?" Eva asked as they arrived at the Garage.

Mandy checked her pockets, pulling one out of a back pocket. At the office door, they both slipped on their masks.

"Come into the warm while I pay."

Mark nodded and followed her into the tropical warmth of the garage's office. Eva sorted out her car and the bill with the receptionist. Thankfully the car passed, with only a warning on front tyre wear, so it will need a new one in a month or two, otherwise it would be good for another year.

Mark stayed close to Eva as she paid, ignoring the empty comfy chairs for customers. Once finished and outside, they got into Eva's car. Mark settled into the passenger seat and Eva buckled her seat belt. As she started the engine, she looked across at Mark.

Mark smiled back. His teeth were porcelain white and as the sun streamed through the windscreen two things struck her. One was he was holding the seat belt off his chest, as a woman would do. The second was how pretty he was, with his blue eyes and long eyelashes. Not a hunk or handsome but prettier than her last girlfriend and thinner too, if you could ignore the oversized, baggy hoody.

Whaaat... Are you mad? This Good Samaritan kick is getting to you.

Eva shook the image from her mind, then drove back out onto the main road and made her way to the local McDonalds. In the drive-through, she ordered two breakfast rolls. Collecting their rolls from the drive-through window, Eva saw the hunger in Mark's eyes, so rather than driving on, she parked up in the car park and suggested that they eat.

Mark's breakfast roll barely touched the sides as he wolfed his down, confirming Eva's worries. She offered him her roll, and before he could politely refuse, he wolfed the second one down, too. Realising his greed, Mark shot Eva a guilty look of apology.

"That's okay. I had breakfast before coming out. I could see you were hungry. When did you last eat?"

"I don't know, but I'm not hungry now, sorry. I've got some carrot cake we can have with our tea at home."

"Haha, that's okay, carrot cake sound's lovely."

Eva started her car, and they left the car park, heading back towards the garage and the railway bridge.

On the railway bridge, a police car had parked and two officers were peering over the balustrade, talking into their radios and looking around. Eva felt guilty, a part of her wanted to tell the officers everything was okay, but she didn't want to open a can of worms and paperwork.

"Well, there's a first. Maybe I'll have to avoid sitting there for a while."

Mark shrank down in the chair as if they'd recognise him.

Mark gave Eva directions, taking them down a side road, past the garage and along a suburban road with small one and two-bed terrace houses. Midway down the street, Mark indicated for Eva to park up outside a red door.

Sitting there briefly, Eva ran felt unsure. After the lockdowns and now omicron, she was about to enter a stranger's house. But she couldn't walk away from this poor individual. She could see the confused and depressed state he was in.

What are the risks, Covid versus having a flattened Mark or Mandy on her conscience?

Eva made her choice to continue her Good Samaritan role and exited her car. Mark already had his key in the door, unlocking it. Eva locked her car and entered Mark's house.

The house was freezing cold, but at least inside there was no wind chill. A whole mixture of smells products permeated the house, not masculine stale sweaty smells, but cleaning products, air fresheners and a hint of female antiperspirant.

It was a typical one-bed terrace house, where a short hallway opened up to the lounge, linking to the kitchen in the back with a stairway up to the single bedroom and bathroom above the kitchen. As Eva stepped into the immaculately tidy lounge, Mark presented her with an alarm clock sized thermostat.

"See, the screen is blank."

Eva rolled it around in her hands and found the battery compartment, popped it open to drop out two double-A batteries.

"Where's your boiler, and do you have two new ones of these?"

"Here in the kitchen."

Mark nodded and Eva followed him into the small kitchen, which, like the lounge, was spotless. Mark pointed to the boiler, tucked up on the wall in the corner.

Eva recognised the white rectangular combination boiler as being similar, but smaller to hers. She popped open the little hatch and saw the blue flame in the window, then the little dial gauge, showing water pressure was in the green region.

"Well, your pilot light is on and you've water pressure."

"That's good, right?"

"Yeah..."

Eva looked back at the thermostat. It too had a little hatch that she popped open, revealed some buttons and easy-to-read instructions.

Mark rummaged around inside a cabinet drawer to pull out a pack of batteries and popped two double A's out and handed them to Eva. Eva popped them in the thermostat and reread the instructions. She pressed two buttons together, counting to five, then saw the screen double flash and then she toggled the temperature button up.

As the numbers passed ten, the boiler fired up, bringing a huge smile to Mark's face.