My shift at the hospital ends at 11.30AM and it takes me about fifteen minutes to get to the train station, just in time to catch the 11.45AM; sometimes with two or three minutes to spare. Miss it, and I'd have to take a cab, which is not only expensive but also difficult to find at that time of night.
Tonight was no different. Immediately after my shift ended, I clocked out, grabbed my bag and bolted for the station so I wouldn't have to miss my train. I always boarded the train in my uniform as there usually wasn't enough time to change.
Hurriedly, I made my way into the station, walking quickly toward the mezzanine where you swiped your transit card at the turnstiles to gain access onto the train platform.
On the way down to the mezzanine, I spotted－lurking in the shadows behind a pillar－a tall, suspicious-looking man in a dark grey hooded jacket. Being the only other person in the quiet station at that time, a growing sense of apprehension had put me on high alert. It looked like he was grasping something in his hand but two things hindered me from seeing what it was: The dim station light and my increasingly frantic haste to make it onto the platform.
As I passed the pillar, the hooded man stepped out from behind it. Throwing all caution to the wind, I broke into a run－my subway card at the ready to be swiped at the turnstile that led onto the platform－praying the train would arrive in time.
It did. The doors opened.
'I made it!', I thought, almost weeping with relief as I squeezed through the train doors as soon as they opened and found a space to stand among the crowd.
Crowd...?
The train was jam-packed with people. I looked around at the unusually large crowd of commuters. 'Strange', I thought. Normally there would be no more than five people per car at this time of night. Why was there such a big crowd tonight? Was there a special event that had taken place nearby? I supposed that’s what it was.
Tired from my shift and thinking no more of it, I moved slightly further into the train, where there was an empty spot you could lean up against, and started to close my eyes for a bit. Moments later, I felt a sudden soreness in my throat, followed by a dull tummy ache. 'Oh crap', I thought. Was I coming down with something? I couldn't afford to lose a shift; I had rent and bills to pay! Every shift mattered! I massaged my throat and stomach in an attempt to soothe the discomfort.
About half an hour later, the discomfort in my throat and stomach had crescendoed into a painful throb. Fortunately, I was just five more stops away from mine. I tried to endure the pain for another twenty more minutes. Finally, clutching my increasingly painful stomach while massaging my now-burning throat, I stepped out of the train onto the overcrowded platform.
Wait...
Why was it so crowded here? It had to be close to 1.00AM! I skimmed through my surroundings quickly. Something was wrong.
This wasn’t my stop! This...this was the stop where I had first boarded the train! A creepy feeling of disquiet crept into my heart as I moved, past the masses of faceless people milling about on the platform, toward the mezzanine.
And there on the ground, lying next to a pillar, I saw her; A girl in a nurse’s uniform. She had blood pouring out of two nasty wounds－one across her throat and the other in her abdomen－made by a very sharp knife. In an instant, the memories came flooding back to me.
I had never left the mezzanine that night. I never got to swipe my card at the turnstile. I never even made it past the pillar. My assailant, the hooded man, had attacked me with a knife. Yes. That was what he was holding in his fist.
Tonight was no different. Immediately after my shift ended, I clocked out, grabbed my bag and bolted for the station so I wouldn't have to miss my train. I always boarded the train in my uniform as there usually wasn't enough time to change.
Hurriedly, I made my way into the station, walking quickly toward the mezzanine where you swiped your transit card at the turnstiles to gain access onto the train platform.
On the way down to the mezzanine, I spotted－lurking in the shadows behind a pillar－a tall, suspicious-looking man in a dark grey hooded jacket. Being the only other person in the quiet station at that time, a growing sense of apprehension had put me on high alert. It looked like he was grasping something in his hand but two things hindered me from seeing what it was: The dim station light and my increasingly frantic haste to make it onto the platform.
As I passed the pillar, the hooded man stepped out from behind it. Throwing all caution to the wind, I broke into a run－my subway card at the ready to be swiped at the turnstile that led onto the platform－praying the train would arrive in time.
It did. The doors opened.
'I made it!', I thought, almost weeping with relief as I squeezed through the train doors as soon as they opened and found a space to stand among the crowd.
Crowd...?
The train was jam-packed with people. I looked around at the unusually large crowd of commuters. 'Strange', I thought. Normally there would be no more than five people per car at this time of night. Why was there such a big crowd tonight? Was there a special event that had taken place nearby? I supposed that’s what it was.
Tired from my shift and thinking no more of it, I moved slightly further into the train, where there was an empty spot you could lean up against, and started to close my eyes for a bit. Moments later, I felt a sudden soreness in my throat, followed by a dull tummy ache. 'Oh crap', I thought. Was I coming down with something? I couldn't afford to lose a shift; I had rent and bills to pay! Every shift mattered! I massaged my throat and stomach in an attempt to soothe the discomfort.
About half an hour later, the discomfort in my throat and stomach had crescendoed into a painful throb. Fortunately, I was just five more stops away from mine. I tried to endure the pain for another twenty more minutes. Finally, clutching my increasingly painful stomach while massaging my now-burning throat, I stepped out of the train onto the overcrowded platform.
Wait...
Why was it so crowded here? It had to be close to 1.00AM! I skimmed through my surroundings quickly. Something was wrong.
This wasn’t my stop! This...this was the stop where I had first boarded the train! A creepy feeling of disquiet crept into my heart as I moved, past the masses of faceless people milling about on the platform, toward the mezzanine.
And there on the ground, lying next to a pillar, I saw her; A girl in a nurse’s uniform. She had blood pouring out of two nasty wounds－one across her throat and the other in her abdomen－made by a very sharp knife. In an instant, the memories came flooding back to me.
I had never left the mezzanine that night. I never got to swipe my card at the turnstile. I never even made it past the pillar. My assailant, the hooded man, had attacked me with a knife. Yes. That was what he was holding in his fist.
I remember it now. I remember it all.
* * *
If you happen to take the last train at night and see an unusually large crowd of people, do come up and say “Hi”. I’m the girl in a nurse’s uniform, standing near a pillar, clutching my throat and stomach in a painful grimace.
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