The 7 Days

Day 1

‘Excuse me sir, your ticket please,’ asked the conductor almost too regally.
Tyler stirred and let out an involuntary groan for the sudden influx of light from the afternoon rays stung his eyes.
The conductor cleared his throat, his stare brimming of irritation.
Tyler searched every compartment in his rucksack but couldn’t find his ticket stub.
‘Did you purchase a ticket for this ride … Sir?’ the conductor said, punctuating the final word with a dollop of menace.
‘Yea, just gimme a minute. It’s here somewhere,’ replied Tyler, this time searching on the cabin floor.
Then he heard a voice. ‘Try your shirt pocket,’ she said.
He looked up and sitting opposite him was a girl, smiling. His gaze stood transfixed on her causing her blood to flush her cheeks a little. She then gestured towards his chest. Tyler looked down and saw a piece of white stub sticking out against the red and black of his chequered shirt. He promptly handed the ticket over to the conductor who glanced at it, handed it back to Tyler and left without another word.
The train continued chugging along its century old tracks, gently swaying the cabin sideways.
‘Err, thanks,’ Tyler said.
‘No problem,’ she answered. ‘You must’ve had a really good sleep huh,’ she continued.
‘What do you mean?’ he replied.
She grinned cheekily and using her eyes, pointed towards the corner surface of the table resting in between them.
He saw a small pool of liquid and took it all but 2 seconds to realize what it was. By instinct, he quickly rested his elbow on his puddle of saliva and felt the cooling sensation soaking up the sleeve of his shirt. It was repulsive but no where near the embarrassment he was suffering at that moment.
The girl laughed out loud and Tyler wished he had a hole he could crawl into now. The girl placed a packet of wet wipes on the table but he chose to ignore it.
She then fished out a book from her bag and began reading. The worn out hardcopy had A Tale of Two Cities labelled on it and Tyler wondered to himself, who the heck still read Dickens nowadays.
He was on the brink of dozing off again when the train began slowing down. The name of the next station came over the crackling loudspeakers as the metallic wheels let out an ear splitting screech. Tyler got up and swung the rucksack over his shoulder. He noticed the girl bookmarking her novel and then placing it back delicately into her bag. She also pocketed her tissue she had offered to him earlier.
They were the only ones who got off at the platform. He was in front and she, a couple of steps behind. He felt her gaze weighing down his shoulders and increased his pace. They both reached the exit of the station and headed in opposite directions. Tyler glanced over his shoulder and saw the girl walking with her face buried in the Dickens classic once more.