Is This Seat Empty? Closed

Youssuf huffed, exasperated to a great extreme. His mom always had to go off to work, no matter what happened. He would have betted a great deal that even when he was born she had run to work in a few hours. Other kids had their families with them; what did Youssuf Baid have? Four Sickles and some Knuts.
He'd boarded the train about an hour ago, and had found a compartment almost immediately. But he just didn't fit in. He felt a rush of excitement despite his having no friends (yet). But he didn't want to talk to anyone just then, so he walked along the train till he found a empty compartment. He opened his trunk and took out a book, The Name of The Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, and then stuffed his luggage in the rack above.
He sat down and had just begun to read when the dry rustling of a page interrupted his silence. He yelled in surprise, jumped nearly a foot in the air, and then came back to earth, trembling. There was a girl in the compartment! She had been so silent that he hadn't noticed her at all. She looked at him oddly, with greenish eyes and bright red hair. How had he missed seeing her?

He said, still rather amazed,

How on earth did you do that? I didn't even see you! I'm Youssuf Baid, nice to meet you.

Receiving no response, he decided to sit and continue reading, not minding that the girl wanted to be alone. He knew the feeling. He just wanted to be amicable.

Her mind was so far off she hardly noticed another person enter the car. That was until they noticed her, making the fact known by letting out a loud yell. She glanced up from her book to give them, him, she guessed, a long look, an eyebrow arched in a way that seemed to say 'seriously?' I guess I’m not the only one who can’t focus today, she thought wryly. And there goes my empty compartment.
At least he seemed like someone she could befriend if the book in his hand was any indication. ‘The Name of the Wind’. A book that had been on her reading list for far too long.
Mind still on the book, Autumn completely missed him introducing himself. Realizing a moment later he was talking to her, they inwardly groaned. They really needed to pull it together. Trying to think of a way to salvage the situation, they thought of what their siblings might do. Best to take advice from the extroverts, after all. Summer probably would make some sort of flirtatious joke, totally not Autumns style. And besides, he was a guy. Not her type.
Spring wouldn’t have missed the beginning of the conversation, to begin with, but would try to find something in common to talk about. And Winter… well, Winters worse at this than me, Autumn thought, letting out a small laugh before realizing she wasn’t alone. Great. Say something.

“I’m Autumn, how’s your book?” They blurted out.

Youssuf smiled, relieved to see someone finally interested in reading books on the train. None of the few quasi-friends he'd managed to make so far were at all curious about books. He was actually beginning to think no one had even looked at their schoolbooks, much less fantasies and fictions. So sad. They didn't know what they were missing at all.
He said happily -

Very nice to meet you, Autumn. It's a great book. The first in its series, actually. It's about a boy called Kvothe-

Then he paused, looking rather shrewdly at the girl. The way she had asked the question, with the laugh just before it, made him think it was a sarcastic question, and he wasn't very good at judging English sarcasm yet(he was much better at Hindi sarcasm). Then again, maybe it just meant that the girl knew the book already.
Youssuf grinned and said -

You already know this book, do you not? I can see you are aware, at least, of the basics. I won't give you spoilers, then. Which book are you reading?

The girl looked pretty shy to him. Maybe she didn't want to have a conversation. Ah well, she looked like an introvert. Not a problem for him. He knew all too well that introverts are just extroverts without friends.
@Autumn Agapov I don't mind at all. I hope you don't mind the @

Autumn smiled back at him, relieved she hadn’t completely messed up, and that she had steered the conversation in a direction that she enjoyed.

“Very nice to meet you, Autumn. It's a great book. The first in its series, actually. It's about a boy called Kvothe-”

Youssuf started speaking, before pausing again. Autumn blinked, mentally going back through the conversation. She hadn’t done anything, recently at least, to discourage him, had she? Youssuf voice brought her back to the present.

“You already know this book, do you not? I can see you are aware, at least, of the basics. I won't give you spoilers, then. Which book are you reading?”

He was grinning, and Autumn couldn’t help but laugh, both at their own nerves and at Youssufs revelation.

“I know the very basics. I’ve been meaning to read the series for forever, but haven’t gotten the chance yet,”

Angled their own book so he could see the cover, they continued.

“Right now I’m working through Louise Pennys’ Inspector Gamache series. I’ve just started book three. The series follows Inspector Gamache, obviously, a homicide investigator.”

Realizing they were rambling, they stopped talking, glancing at the book in their lap once again.

Youssuf grinned, this time without restraint, with two reasons. First of all, Autumn had finally laughed properly, and he did prefer his friends to be happy in his company. Secondly, the girl had taste! Mystery novels, and not just any mystery novels, but Louise Penny! Armand Gamache! Although, to be honest, Youssuf hadn't read many of her books - only Still Life, Dead Cold, Kingdom of The Blind and one more, which he'd forgotten. His mother had introduced him to the series, and he'd first watched the movie Still Life-A Three Pines Mystery on TV.
He asked curiously -

Which book in the series are you reading? Maybe I've read it. I actually like mysteries a lot, especially Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot. Sherlock Holmes comes a close seccond, with Miss Marple and Inspector Gamache and Tintin (don't judge me) tying for third.

Then, realizing he was babbling like a idiot, he flushed a bright crimson and shut up. Youssuf mimed zipping his lips shut, locking them and then throwing the key away.
Just then, the food trolley passed, and Youssuf rushed to the door. He smiled at the lady and said -

I'd like some..ah..Fizzing Whizzbees, two Exploda Sodas, two Cauldron Cakes and some Licorice Wands, please.

After obtaining the items, he sat on his side and wordlessly began eating a cake. Then suddenly he looked up and said -

Hey Autumn, you want some of this? I dunno if you've tasted these, but they are awesome. I brought my own Droobles Gum and Chocolate Frogs for random chewing, I can share those too if you'd like. I insist.

Suddenly the door slid open. A exceptionally small first-year stood there, fidgeting nervously. He stammered out - "I'm looking for Youssuf Bad?"
Youssuf smiled gently and corrected -

It's Youssuf Baid.

Slightly more confidently, the boy said - "She told me to tell you it's done." Youssuf sighed with relief and said to Autumn -

My cover page. I asked a friend of mine to help me make a piece of art for my novel. It must be finished.

He smiled regretfully and bowed slightly to his new friend, feeling unutterably ashamed. Youssuf mumbled a sincere apology and swore to find her later. Then he quickly darted outta the door before he could see her expression.
Do you like the banner? @Autumn Agapov

Autumn blinked, bewildered. What just happened, she thought. One minute the compartment had held another student, and the next he was running off to who knows where. She hadn’t even been able to answer his questions before he had left, running like someone had set his pants on fire.
Rolling her eyes at the image, they thought back to what he had said right before leaving. A small, probably first year had entered, said something about something being done, any then Youssuf had turned to her and said… Something about a book. A novel he was writing. Something about its cover art.
Autumn fell back against the seat, a puff of air escaping her. He was writing a novel? She thought in amazement. A goal she had only dreamed of accomplishing, and here was another student her age already working on the cover art of one.
Running her thumb along the side of their book, a mindless habit, they pulled out the small tape player that they had gotten right before leaving for Hogwarts. A kind of gag-gift from their friend, along with some tapes.
Taking out a pair of headphones, she plugged them into the player, inserting a tape as well. Pressing the play button, they turned their attention back to the scenery outside the window. Hopefully, they would get to see Youssuf again, and get to learn more about his novel.