After I was typing here last night I strolled over to Jiriho Z Podebrad to get the metro home. As I arrived it was already 10pm. I slunk to the deserted half of the platform, fortunately only 2 minutes remained until the train arrived.
As I took my seat a voice came over the intercom system, loud and angry. For a second I thought it might be for me, so I checked briefly that I wasn’t doing anything wrong, then glanced down at the other end of the platform. A guy was on the tracks, looking down the tunnel and climbing out reluctantly under instruction from a ununiformed but besuited man.
As he climbed out it occurred to me that his friend could still be down there, and the train had just a minute left to arrive. The guy, now on the platform, seemed happy, but drunk. I wasn’t sure whether something was going seriously wrong.
Then the sound began. The usual distant echoes that indicate imminent arrival, the gale-force gust of wind. This time they sounded and felt ominous. I put my hands over my ears, just in case. The horn is loud beyond belief. When the lights came and the train arrived I kept my eyes fixed on it. The driver saw me and laughed.
Of course, I’m glad that it was all in my imagination, but feel a little foolish, all the same.