Last Train to London

FRIDAY

"Thanks again Lily, I'll see you at 5," you said, scrambling to pick up the last things needed for the next few days away from home. The next train was leaving at 11 am, and it was already half past 10. Having had a few days off from university, you decided with your long-time friend Lily to hang out. Listening to your indie playlist with her was always a part of the day. You put on black boots, then popped on headphones and finally headed out the door. Since it was a sunny summer day, you opted for a floral blue dress, black knee socks and a leather jacket. You decided on a simple makeup look with mascara and lipstick.

Living around 20 minutes from university was so perfect, but to travel to central London to visit friends and attend events meant an extra 45 minutes added to the travel time. You would have moved already, but you adored your little studio too much to leave yet and the location was so convenient as you were still attending classes. But now you were in the last year of your degree. In fact, there was around 1 month left of school and then graduation. It meant that you could finally move to central London and possibly start work there too. It also meant being closer to Lily, knowing her for 8 years now. Having attended the same school and living in the same neighbourhood grew you both closer. You spent many weekends together and talked about all things in life - music, your cinnamon bun obsession and how you both wanted to see that ABBA tribute band that performed every year in the area. You never got to, but still, joke about it from time to time. At the end of the last year at secondary school, she met her boyfriend Erik (who she is still with today) and you became a little distant. Not in a bad way, it was just because after school ended, she moved to central London and got a job, with long work hours, so you only usually saw each other on weekends - kind of like when you were kids. She also spent a lot of time with Erik, which is not a bad thing, but meant she spent more of her time in central than coming to see you. She didn't live with Erik yet, but it didn't stop them from seeing each other often. He lived on the other side of the city, kind of like you did. You still saw each other for events and such, but not as often as you would have liked.

You started walking down the road to the train station. It was quarter to 11, which was perfect timing as you could still grab a coffee before going to the train platform. You knew the man at the coffee stand that was by the train station entrance. He set it up not long after you began your studies and you would often pop by to grab a coffee and chat.

"Ello y/n! How are you!" Mike said cheerfully when he saw you walking up to the stand. He was always so chirpy like that. Made you wonder what kind of coffee he drank, and If It would help you write the essays. You grinned at the thought.

"Hi, Mike! I'm alright, thank you! And you? The usual please." Mike knew that you always got a black coffee with 2 sugars and cream. "Wonderful! I'm fabulous, thank you. I got you," he said and you nodded while placing the money in front of him. He picked it up and grabbed a cup to start making the coffee. You looked up at the boarding screen to see when the train was arriving.

"There you go! Have a good day!" Mike said as he handed the coffee to you. Thanking him, you grabbed the coffee and walked to the platform.

The train arrived at the station and you walked in, making your way towards the back and sitting in an empty group of chairs. The train had tables with the seats and it was handy as you could sit and do laptop work or drink coffee during the trip. The train journey made a few stops at the main busy train stations in London, and usually, people would slip in and out, depending on where the location was. You usually got off in Bloomsbury, where the museums and parks you liked were.

20 minutes into the trip, the train arrived at the second stop, and everyone left, making the carriage you were in empty. Then suddenly, someone entered and sat in the seating area diagonally from you. It was only the two of you now. Your eyes were usually glued to a book or the laptop, not noticing who would be there, but today you glanced over to see a tall man, wearing a blue jacket, black jeans and orange-tinted sunglasses, which caught your attention. He also had on some black boots that matched yours, making you smile. You couldn't see the man's eyes at all, but his hair was short and fluffy like he had gently styled it. He also had a short trimmed gingery beard. He placed a small notepad on the table along with a black film camera and coffee cup with a name on the side: Alexander. Cute name, you thought and went back to your phone to change your music. 4 minutes later, you received an incoming call from Lily. Confused, you picked it up and answered.

"Hey, what's up? I'm on the train now" you explained. "Hi, y/n... I'm so sorry, but unfortunately, I can't make it today. Erik had asked me to go to this event with him and I forgot that I already had agreed. Can we meet another time?" she explained. You placed your hands on your forehead and sighed. This happened before, but in those times you had not left your place yet. This time you were actually on the train and on the way.

"Lily... we already agreed today and you know this isn't the first time? I'm already on the train, halfway to yours..." you said to her. She tried to explain how she couldn't leave Erik now and that she would not be home until tomorrow. You finally agreed to meet next week, as It would be the next time that the both of you would be available.

"Thank you loads y/n! I'll see you next week, you take care! Text me when you make it! You can still stay at my place and leave tomorrow if you still want." Lily said. Agreeing sadly, you said ok and hung up. Not this shit again, mumbling to yourself, and frustrated you dropped the headphones onto the table.​​ The man looked up at you. You still couldn't see his eyes but had a sense that he saw you and heard the conversation.

You tried to ignore him, as he removed his sunglasses, now looking directly at you. You couldn't believe your eyes.

Oh my god. It was Alex Turner... from the Arctic Monkeys...