Station

Originally posted on February 10, 2017.

As Thomas left the train and stood on the station platform, he realized that he was probably quite lucky. Had he been traveling by car, he would’ve gotten into an accident for sure. But when the Great Shift struck while he was riding the train, the engine simply screeched to a halt on the tracks. The abrupt stop shook everyone up a bit, but it was a minor shock compared to the one that everyone got once they realized they had all swapped bodies. Thomas found himself in the body of a woman wearing silver leggings and a striped top that had been sitting just a few rows in front of him. There was a lot of commotion and confusion for the next half hour, but then things began to settle down when the train started moving again. Thomas made sure to ask the person now in his body for the keys and wallet out of his pockets; he put them in the silver purse he now held. This reminded many other passengers to do the same, and a middle aged Asian woman asked for some things from the purse Thomas held. She seemed surprisingly calm about being in a new body, but Thomas felt a little bad. Her new body looked about ten to twenty years older than the one he now had, her former one. He knew none of this was his fault, but he still felt guilty. On the platform, he made sure to stop her to give her his phone number. She walked away with a silent smile. Thomas just stood there for a few more minutes, wondering how he was ever going to adjust to his new body.