Train Journey

The seat in front of the man was your average train seat. It was not particularly a nice colour and was worn with a tacky pattern. It had the usual two armrests, one being shared with the also vacant seat beside it. The fabric was beginning to get worn away, whether from constant use or people disregarding the ‘Please do not place your feet on the seats.’ sign on the wall next to it.
         Closer to him was a small table between the pairs of seats. He was always puzzled by this. Why have a table that allows two out of four people to use it. To him it was more logical to have it extended, so if need be all four would be able to use it. It wasn’t a very nice table. There were lots of stains, which may have been coffee or some other beverage, that hadn’t been cleaned off. Also he realised on further examination, it smelt a little.
         The seat next to him was empty save for his black briefcase. The seat looked just like the other seats he supposed, nothing extreme stood out he supposed. His briefcase, he thought, looked rather smart. It was one of those ones that looked like it belonged in a film where someone would open its brass clips and pull back the top revealing a large sum of money. This depressed him slightly as  he didn’t a large sum of money in the briefcase, just some boring documents and a lovely pen his wife had gotten him for his birthday a while back.
         Now that he had examined his immediate surrounds he glanced out the window. Not much to see there really, he thought. No one really expected a great view when travelling at night. He could see some pale orange lights shining in the darkness like, well, he supposed like lights in the darkness. There was a reflection of the interior of the carriage though, but it didn’t reveal any new fascinating details to satisfy his curiosity.
         Deciding he wanted to be nosy, he leaned his head to the side to look through the gap between the seats opposite him to see what the person sitting in the next area (or ‘pen’ he called them when it was busy and everyone was packed together like animals.). The man was nothing special. His black hair was balding slightly and his brow was furrowed. He was obviously thinking about something, possibly the crossword he seemed to be doing or maybe what his purpose in life was. There was no way of knowing. He then took note of the slightly sad suit the man was wearing. Pondering over what sort of job the man had. Maybe he was a lawyer or an accountant or even just a car salesman. The man proceed to scribble something on his paper with the crossword, clearly it was that he was thinking about. This bloke seemed a bit dull really, he thought, so he turned his attention to the woman sitting across the aisle.
         She was wearing a bright red t-shirt with some ‘cool’ and ‘fashionable’ brand he’d never heard of. Her jeans looked rather tight, these are what he presumed ‘skinny jeans’ were, not that he was an expert of the clothes industry but it looked rather pointless and couldn’t be good for her blood circulation. He noticed that she had rather short hair; it looked quite smart on her. It was dyed blonde, was that called bleaching it? He didn’t know. It was far too technical for him; he’d always left his hair the natural colour. Her face was obscured from view by the book she was reading, one “Feast for Crows”. He actually knew what that was. It was part of that Game of Thrones series that had become very popular recently.  He’d read the first one, but he got distracted before starting the second one. He should really pick it up again.
         A voice spoke. “The next stop is ?????. Please mind the gap when alighting from this train.” That was his stop! He grabbed his briefcase and headed to the doors to wait. On his way he avoided the sticky patch on the dull floor that he had accidently stepped on earlier, someone had spilt something, and he didn’t want to know what it was. That was always the safest way to live life he thought. As he got to the doors the train slowed down and there was the little shake that let you know it was stopped. The doors opened and he strode off, carefully so as to mind the gap.