A Day On The Town

Stepping on to the train after class I wonder where on earth I'm going to find a seat since peak hour has just started, 45 minutes of standing, I can't stand that. To my avail, I find a 'special needs' seat free for sitting.

"I have a special need. A need to sit", I think to myself.

"Plus, everyone else has had plenty of time to grab them by now, they obviously aren't in need".

As I sit down, I look around at the people on the carriage and get comfortable and I feel as if someone is staring at me. I then notice the other special needs seat opposite me, facing me. A man in baggy blue jeans, old sneakers, a baggy jumper and shortish ruffled blonde hair is looking at me.

I make eye contact with him for a slightly longer amount of time than what is comfortable, and he still refuses to look away, so I get to reading my book. It's The Hobbit, I never read it as a child.

I can still feel the man staring at me, not getting a proper glance before as it was only brief, I feel compelled to check again and see if he is actually staring at me. Sure enough, I look up from my book across the carriage and the same thing happens. We make eye contact for a long time and then I give in and feel intimidated.

"He must not be quite right".

I get back to reading my book once more and I can still feel him staring at me. I try to ignore it. I find it funny, probably because I'm intimidated and nervous, so now I'm try not to laugh, and trying not to stare back at him.

Of course I give in again and look up. I start by looking at the people near him, hoping that maybe he will look away if he sees that I'm now more animated. Nope.

As I stare back at him, I realise the person next to him is also staring at me. I look at the man sitting next to him only to realise that he unfortunately has Down's Syndrome. Upon making eye contact with the second man, he is less brave and rapidly breaks eye contact with me by whipping his head around to his left, quite violently. This makes me want to laugh even more. Not at his misfortune, but at his reaction, and at the fact that I thought I was being targeted for some violent crime of mugging.

It has now been 6 stations of him staring at me non-stop. Upon the 6th station, and many more exchanges of stares between the three of us, a woman and man wearing 'Monkami' logos walk over to them and get them ready to disembark the train, and are followed by several more people with disabilities.

Relieved I wasn't going to be attacked by someone with anger problems, I pondered the situation and realised that they must have been on an excursion to the city.

"Good on them", I thought.

"They were probably more scared of me than I was of them".