Evenlypiece

After about an hour, the train finally made its way to the last stop in the west - Boon Lay. Throughout the journey from way far in the east, I had to endure standing by the door on one side leaning on a glass panel next to the seats. As I felt the train easing and seemingly making its last few meters to the stop I did what normal people in haste would do. I decided to quickly move to the door on the other side which I remembered alighting from the previous day.

In the most gentlemanly manner, I cautiously made my way through a few passengers. With “excuse me’s” and “sorry’s” I eventually reached the other side though it was a chore having to squeeze along with a bulky field pack. For a moment, I felt a sense of achievement. I was certain I was saving up few crucial minutes to get to the bus interchange on time. That was until I saw a reflection of people crowding by the opposite door which all along I had been standing next to. I ignored. I was confident I would be the first to alight because I had to otherwise I would be serving time doing unnecessary sentry duties past office hours. The train was still moving, but in about a few seconds it would drive in to the station and stop by the platform. But it became more obvious as crowd grew bigger on the other side. I turned halfway to get a glance only to see an office guy giving me a puzzled look but I knew he wasn’t the only one.

It all became clear. The door opening was the one I moved away from and now I was stuck behind all the passengers, cringing in embarrassment. Still in denial, I immediately planned a cover up to reduce the impact of probably one of the most humbling moments in life. I pretended to be talking over the phone, smiling at myself as I joined the crowd on the way out. Well it was a bad move and I know that didn’t work but that was the best I could think of.

Everything would have been an okay experience, a typical mistake I could have easily smiled away. But all that happened with myself in my Smart 4 uniform that clearly displayed my name and the organization I belong to. So much for being in SMART 4.