The Train Journey

It was a typical rainy Monday morning in Brighton, alarm shrieked to life at six forty five making me fly out of bed and into the bathroom for a quick hot shower and downstairs just in time for half a cup of coffee, enough to finally wake me up.
The last few days at work were a nightmare, I worked in an office that dealt with supplying materials for construction sites but, lately, people all around me were being laid off, I was beginning to wonder when it was going to be my turn, so, before it happened, I was job hunting. I had this morning off work as I had an interview for another construction company that seemed to still be doing really well and more work was coming in each day, I knew that I would never be lucky enough to get a supervisors job of which I had now but still, it was good money, all I had to do to impress them was to get to the interview on time, I had to rush.

Locking the front door, I ran to the bus stop and before I knew it I was standing on a very busy bus sandwiched between a very pregnant woman and a hairy man with a beer belly and a very nasty aroma about him, I started to pray that this was not an omen of how the rest of my day was going to go. I tried to look everywhere but at the man's armpit. I had twenty minutes to get to the train station, get my ticket and find what platform my train was on and get on it. I was only thirty two years of age and always thought of myself as quite a fit person but just running for the bus exhausted me, I was holding on to a post trying my hardest not to breath all over the person in front of me, but losing terribly, then to top of the already annoying morning, my stomach decided to complain about being empty, my face went so red, I thought that I was going to burst a blood vessel.
"Just great, that's all I need." I grumbled. I really thought that I had said it to myself but from the looks I was getting from people around me, I realised that my thoughts had slipped onto my tongue and out of my mouth.

I made it to the train station, thank god for small miracles, still had time, I ran through the gates and looked up at the hundreds of boards with the tiniest of writing on them looking for a train that would take me to London Victoria, all the station names were rolling into one, I stared up until I finally found the one that I needed to get, seven forty five platform eighteen, here I go, rushing to the ticket machine, I pulled out my credit card out to pay, card declined, what? This was really not happening, not today. I cancelled the screen and rushed to the next one, started the purchase again, card declined. By the end of the third try being declined I was so close to losing my cool and crying my eyes out, I had to rummage through my bag and try to come up with the right money, running over to a ticket counter I looked at the woman, waiting for her to ask if she could help me, she didn't.
"Excuse me, can you help me?" I asked. Well someone had to speak first.
"Yes?" she asked, not looking at me.
"I need a return please, to London Victoria."
"That is, thirty five pounds eighty."
"How much, is that for first class? I just want a standard ticket." This price was going to kill me.
"That is for a standard ticket, for today, do you want it?"
How rude, I thought, making sure that this time I kept it to myself. Taking my purse out, I turned it upside down and the entire contented fell onto the counter.
"Yes I do want it please, just let me find the right money."
I was twenty pence short and I could see that this stern looking woman was not going to go easy on me in the slightest, I had to search for one more coin.
"Do you want this ticket or not?" she rudely asked me.
"Yes, of course I do, I must have it in my bag, I searched everywhere, and, just as I was about to give up, there, right in the deepest corner of my bag was a twenty pence piece, a miracle, with a big satisfied look on my face, I gave the woman the coin and she printed off my ticket, happily telling me that I had just missed the train and that the next one would be in seventeen minutes, she was very lucky that we were separated by perplex glass.

The train was due to leave any second, I had found an empty seat and sat down with a huge sigh of relief, all this for an interview that I knew I was already well qualified for and should get with no problems, I wish that we could have done all this over the phone.
We were off, we were finally leaving Brighton station, in just over fifty minutes, I would be in London and towards the office, I still had time, now I could just sit back and relax. Closing my eyes, I started to dream about how this new job would suit me, that if I enjoyed it there, I could maybe look into relocating, there was nothing keeping me in Brighton, no family or friends to stop me.
Kick, I opened one eye, something had given me a jerk, nothing, I closed my eyes and once again, I was jerked awake, turning slightly, I noticed a woman in the seat behind with a small child on her lap, I had just found the culprit and he had what looked like a smirk on his face a second before he kicked the back of my seat again. I wanted to strangle him. Looking down at my mickey mouse watch, I saw that I only had another fifteen minutes of this dreadful journey to go, thank god, I stood up, brushed myself down and ventured to the toilet to freshen up, locking the door, I sat down on the seat and started to wee then realised there and then that there was no toilet paper, I did a scream that only myself, in this toilet, could hear, this was the last straw, now I was going to be uncomfortable all day. Suddenly, a thought, I shook my bottom as much as I could, dressed myself and proceeded to make my way down the train checking all the toilets and, to my utter surprise and happiness, the last toilet had tissue, I was saved. I made it all the way back to my now occupied seat and stood there looking like a complete and utter fool for moving in the first place, and to my disgust, the kid was behaving himself, sitting there looking like an angel.

We pulled into London Victoria and I practically threw myself off the train and rushed to get out of the station to have a stress calming cigarette and time to pull myself together before the interview. This was a big deal for me, I knew I had the job already with my glowing references, but, I still wanted to make a really good impression. After a few puffs of my cigarette, I put it out in the nearest ashtray, popped a mint into my mouth an started to make my way to Compete Construction Limited which was only two roads away.

Rushing away from the station, I stopped at the first set of traffic lights and waited for the green man to show for me to cross, I kept looking both ways, counting down the seconds for the lights to change. The green man finally showed and I practically run across the road. I arrived at the company with only minutes to spare sweating profusely, I needed to calm down and get myself together, I needed to show that I was fully composed and ready for anything. I did not have to wait too long until the secretary came out and told me that the manager, Mr Burgess was ready for me.

Walking into the large office, I was met by Mr Burgess standing by his desk ready to shake my hand, he had a smile on his face so I took that as a good sign.
"Good morning Ms Self, how were your travels, no trouble getting here I hope."
"No Mr Burgess, everything was fine and went like clockwork, thank you." I replied through clenched teeth.

Fifteen minutes later, I saw myself standing outside of the building, the interview was over, all the travelling, the rushing and the panic, the sweaty man, the credit card declines, the kicking child, I put up with all that just to be told, after fifteen lousy minutes that the job had gone to someone younger, a school leaver, they wanted to tell me in person. I now had to make the fifty minute train ride back to Brighton, I would have to walk into my current job like it was the best job in the world.

I wonder what tomorrow will be like.

The End