Outside

2

Making my way back to the tiny room where Ross is stood huddled with yet another group of rowdy men, I unhook my leather jacket from the back of the door and collect my bag from the floor beside the sofa. I can feel their eyes burning holes in the back of my head with every move I make and quite frankly it makes me feel way too uncomfortable. Putting the fake smile back on my face, I quickly say goodbye to Ross and his clones and practically run towards the exit door before any of them can reply with their snarky comments.

Luckily when I open the door, Van, or whatever his name was, and his little long-haired buddy have disappeared from the spot they were located before, which is good because it means I can just run to the train station without any more irritation. I hate having to get the train, there's always some creepy man staring at you from afar and usually they don't even bother to get on the actual train- it's like they just stand there only to watch people get on.

Thankfully, the train station is pretty much empty tonight except for a few drunken women stumbling their way to the ticket machine, I quietly laugh at the small one who almost falls down the stairs trying to catch up to her mates. Making my way over to the machine to get a ticket for myself, I shuffle around in my bag to find some spare change and after a few minutes I finally dig out five pounds and slot it into the machine. Not long after, my ticket comes flying down and I quickly grab it and stroll through the open doors of an empty carriage.

When I pull my phone from the front pocket of my rucksack, the bright screen glows in my face and I tightly squeeze my eyes shut at the sudden beam of light. It's only just passed midnight and the train hasn't set off yet, even though it's clear that no one else is getting on at this time of night. I decide to take the silence of the empty carriage as a chance to finally have some peace and quiet as I unravel my headphones from my bag, plugging the wire into my phone as i do so.

The train jolts a little before it finally sets off and I can hear the faint, gravelly sound of the wheels on the tracks under the high volume of my music in my ears. The train ride back to where i live is only about ten minutes, it only passes one other town before mine so it's not too much hassle, that's the only advantage of getting the train, along with how cheap it is which is a huge benefit for me especially with the diabolical wages i get from work.

As the train finally stops in my little town's station, I step off with my music still filling my ears. Swinging my bag into my back once again, I saunter through the silent streets and gradually find my way home in the darkness. when I reach my house, the porch light is still on and I can hear the distant sound of the TV playing from the living room. I'm assuming it's my dad since he's always up late watching God knows what whilst my mum is probably upstairs either reading or fast asleep. After unlocking the door, I grab the cold handle and turn it downwards before stepping into the warmth of my house and only to be greeted by the loud barking coming from Domino.

"hey boy!" I squeal through a laugh and bend down to ruffle the large amount of hair on his head. Barking and practically deafening me, Domino jumps onto my lap and begins to lick my face playfully before i put him back down onto the floor and stand to my feet again.

"Is mum asleep?" I ask my dad quietly as i walk further into my house, taking my shoes off at the entrance to the living room where he's slouched against the sofa with a beer in his hand.

"Yeah, said she had a head ache" he replied without looking at me, instead his eyes are still fixed on the flashing screen of the TV in front of him, "how was work?" he asks unexpectedly and I look up at him confused since he never asks me how work was, but he still hadn't moved his eyes to face my direction.

"It was alright" my short response implies my lack of interest in the conversation about work and I slide the second boot from my foot and carry them both up the stairs.