The Dark Station
The dark station. Figures in shadows. Hard seats and cigarette light. A gridded floor. Patches of footprints in the orange glow from vehicles dropping off more of the weary, picking up more of the weary. Consett. It’s Monday, 5.25 pm. I sit straining my eyes trying to stay awake, trying to see numbers on the bus fronts beyond blackened glass.
An uneventful day. Surprised I managed the whole shift after last night again found me sitting up in bed with Schopenhauer. I dropped the book near midnight and lay back, fireworks in my head till almost one-thirty. Up again before seven. Everything since standard routine. Switch off upon arrival at warehouse, switch on stepping out again.
The dark station. The girl next to me dressed in black. Raven hair hiding half her face. For a moment I think I’ve gone back to 1987 when goth-rockers still crept about town, going to see Siouxsie And The Banshees or The Mission. She knows I’m aware of her presence, plays with her hair, tilts her head and releases a cloud of smoke.
A perfectly clear sky, tonight is ice-cold. Lucky the bus is early. The girl gets up and moves forward. Following into fresh light I see she is clad in crushed velvet. Twelve years ago I’d have fancied my chances. Twelve years ago I’d have looked the part. Vampires and witches, that’s what the thick-headed used to call us. We couldn’t care less.
On board I close my eyes at last and drift awhile. When I open them I am nearly home. And the dark princess is nowhere to be seen.
Page(s) 24
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