THIS ALL REALLY HAPPENED
I saw a man standing on the train tracks down past where the dark goes. He was wearing a white tunic and white harem pants and his eyes were the headlights of the 4 or 5 train, I couldn’t tell which. He was standing with his arms wide like he wanted to touch both walls of the tunnel. And he said, Hey, it’s okay that that one girl is a better writer, and it’s okay that that other girl got a part on a tv show, and it’s okay that the person you love is not going to be yours the way you want. He opened his mouth and said all that. Pretty amazing if you think about it. That he’d know all that about me, just me, and the things I fret over. He didn’t address any other subway goers. Maybe they didn’t see him.
And then the man was no longer on the tracks but riding atop of the subway car as it pulled in to the station, arms still spread wide; a confident stance. And it was so loud I couldn’t hear him anymore.
I said, What?
And when he spoke again I realized I could hear him through my headphones. He was transmitting his voice directly into my earbuds. Asking me something.
The train conductor shouted, All aboard!
And the man in all white atop the car peered down, his head rising and stretching off his neck like a piece of play-dough rolled out into a snake. It swooped down to where I stood until his face was directly level with mine. His body remained standing confidently on the train.
His mouth opened inches from my face and again I heard him through my headphones. He was asking if I had my ticket to board.
So I screamed at him:
NO, I DON’T, BECAUSE THIS IS THE SUBWAY, YOU STUPID FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!