he had been using his rucksack as a pillow, slowly faded. He wiped his eyes to aid focus and stretched his arms skyward, before reaching into his jeans pocket. He pulled out his phone and a packet of gum, unwrapped a stick and placed it on his tongue, before screwing up the foil and discreetly dropping it at his feet.
He quickly scanned his phone, before placing it on the table in front of him. Zac thought it unusual to get a seat on the train, let alone a four seater with a table, all to himself. These trains into London were usually packed, every day of the week. He looked around the carriage in front of him and then over his shoulder, down the aisle of empty seats behind him.
A few seats over to his left sat an old woman. She was the only other person in the carriage and she sat facing him in a window seat. She had hardly moved since Zac had boarded the train at Lincoln, except to look him up and down a couple of times, with a judging frown on her uptight face.
“Obviously not one for the Geek Chic combo.” Zac chuckled to himself, as the woman eyeballed his Red dwarf t-shirt and ripped jeans.
She stared out of the dark window, straining her eyes to see the fields and streets whizzing by with little more than the reflection of the carriage interior bouncing back. She was wearing a large green wax jacket with a cotton scarf over her head, tied in a neat knot under her chin. She tightly grasped an expensive looking suitcase on the seat next to her. Zac’s phone vibrated on the table and he grabbed at it. A grin turned into a smile as he saw who the message was from.
“Have u got 2 Kings X yet? Emma.”
Zac hated text speak but was willing to overlook it. He didn’t leave Lincolnshire very often, and had not been to London for some time. When he was twelve his parents had taken him to the Natural History Museum, there had been an exhibit on dinosaurs, which as a kid he had loved. He knew all the species. The trip was one of his favourite memories of his mother, who had died a couple of years ago. She was only in her mid-fifties, and had passed away after a long fight with Alzheimer’s. Unusual at such a young age.
Zac had been torn apart by her loss. He and his father had both struggled with the reality of the disease, as their loved one slowly left, piece by piece, until all that remained was a shell. Her death had hit Zac hard, but it was now time for him to do something with his life.
He had spoken to Emma on a website forum for Families of Alzheimer’s suffers. At first it was just someone to talk to who understood, as her father was also a sufferer, who had also developed the condition at an unusually young age. But as they spoke more and more they came to like each other and decided to meet.
“Just at Stevenage! shouldn’t be long now.”
“I’m not sure u should cum. With all that’s happening.”
“What? What’s happening?”
“U know. The riot! My mum doesn’t want me 2 go out.”
“What riot?”
Zac closed his messages and opened the browser on his phone and typed “NEWS” several options for news websites came up and he selected the top one.
“Looting in East London. Breaking story, more to follow.” Read the headline. He closed the site and selected the next one down the list.
“Riots turn bloody in East end.”
Zac tossed his phone onto the table in frustration.
“Shit!” He yelled.
The old woman scolded him with a startled glare before turning her attention back to the passing streets. The train started to slow down and the street lights and passing houses outside came into focus. A platform came up on the left side of the train and Zac looked across to see who was getting on.
“We are now
He quickly scanned his phone, before placing it on the table in front of him. Zac thought it unusual to get a seat on the train, let alone a four seater with a table, all to himself. These trains into London were usually packed, every day of the week. He looked around the carriage in front of him and then over his shoulder, down the aisle of empty seats behind him.
A few seats over to his left sat an old woman. She was the only other person in the carriage and she sat facing him in a window seat. She had hardly moved since Zac had boarded the train at Lincoln, except to look him up and down a couple of times, with a judging frown on her uptight face.
“Obviously not one for the Geek Chic combo.” Zac chuckled to himself, as the woman eyeballed his Red dwarf t-shirt and ripped jeans.
She stared out of the dark window, straining her eyes to see the fields and streets whizzing by with little more than the reflection of the carriage interior bouncing back. She was wearing a large green wax jacket with a cotton scarf over her head, tied in a neat knot under her chin. She tightly grasped an expensive looking suitcase on the seat next to her. Zac’s phone vibrated on the table and he grabbed at it. A grin turned into a smile as he saw who the message was from.
“Have u got 2 Kings X yet? Emma.”
Zac hated text speak but was willing to overlook it. He didn’t leave Lincolnshire very often, and had not been to London for some time. When he was twelve his parents had taken him to the Natural History Museum, there had been an exhibit on dinosaurs, which as a kid he had loved. He knew all the species. The trip was one of his favourite memories of his mother, who had died a couple of years ago. She was only in her mid-fifties, and had passed away after a long fight with Alzheimer’s. Unusual at such a young age.
Zac had been torn apart by her loss. He and his father had both struggled with the reality of the disease, as their loved one slowly left, piece by piece, until all that remained was a shell. Her death had hit Zac hard, but it was now time for him to do something with his life.
He had spoken to Emma on a website forum for Families of Alzheimer’s suffers. At first it was just someone to talk to who understood, as her father was also a sufferer, who had also developed the condition at an unusually young age. But as they spoke more and more they came to like each other and decided to meet.
“Just at Stevenage! shouldn’t be long now.”
“I’m not sure u should cum. With all that’s happening.”
“What? What’s happening?”
“U know. The riot! My mum doesn’t want me 2 go out.”
“What riot?”
Zac closed his messages and opened the browser on his phone and typed “NEWS” several options for news websites came up and he selected the top one.
“Looting in East London. Breaking story, more to follow.” Read the headline. He closed the site and selected the next one down the list.
“Riots turn bloody in East end.”
Zac tossed his phone onto the table in frustration.
“Shit!” He yelled.
The old woman scolded him with a startled glare before turning her attention back to the passing streets. The train started to slow down and the street lights and passing houses outside came into focus. A platform came up on the left side of the train and Zac looked across to see who was getting on.
“We are now
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