“Paddington Station”
Aug 14, 2019The Heathrow Express pulls into Paddington Station. He gets off the train. The sounds and sights and smells are all too familiar. It’s been a year but it feels like only yesterday.
The hustle and bustle of the early morning commute. His throat tightens with anxiety. A pigeon dances at his feet and he just avoids crushing the bird. It follows him as he gets cash from the cash machine and a flat white from the Ritazza. No Costa, no Nero this time. Let the flat white warm his body and soul to prepare him for the days ahead. He should eat, too, but he won’t because he is stubborn.
He sits and stares at the people walking to and fro. The pigeon waltzes around his chair, hoping for a crumb of some food or a loose coin. The pigeons need to make a living, too, and afford to live in London Town. It’s cheap for no one. The pigeon bobs its head and flutters up to a comfy-looking cloth chair. It stares at a man peeling a tangerine. The man isn’t paying attention. He’s smiling at a woman kissing her tired toddler goodbye. The coworkers are to board a train in ten minutes.
This will be the last tangerine the man eats. This will be the last time the woman kisses her child. Their train will run over a group of pigeons huddling on the tracks. Physics will dictate the train keep moving forward at its current pace of 40 km/h, but the gears on the right side will have slipped out of their groove. Approximately fifteen seconds later, the train will be sliding on its right side. Everyone at Paddington Station will feel the explosion and wonder if the terrorists are at it again. Thank God above we voted for Brexit and this madness will come to an end.
He finishes his flat white. His head aches so he pops a couple Advils and drinks some water. London is grey and rainy outside, just the way it should be. He’s in a daze. It will be a long day of walking through the city, walking on a caffeine and anxiety high. Hopefully his throat will loosen up a bit. The pigeon pecks at his shoe and he kicks it away as he gets up and leaves the station.