Competition is of a cut-throat nature these days as many of you would have already keenly observed. You can find stiff competition in almost every walk of life, say for example in finding a suitable job, getting access to a relatively attractive specimen of the opposite sex (with the intension of marriage of course) if it happens to be the fairer one - even more so otherwise. Not to speak of more important aspects of life such as getting access to the toilet at airports, getting movie tickets, at the barber shop and the list seems to go on. I intend not to put the complete list in this particular piece. I choose to be terse in my explanations when given the choice to be so. Well let us go ahead with the story at hand then.
I was assigned to this particular mission which, well was a secret mission. I take the liberty to disclose minor aspects of this mission in an obscure way to avoid the case of information leakage. For the benefit of the reader and at the same time keeping in mind the clandestine nature of my business, I shall call my home country X and the country in question Y. I was on a mission in country Y.
As most of you who are in clandestine missions would very well be aware of, you are seldom entitled to the usual luxuries of life when on one. Luxuries such as a chauffer driven car or the best of hotels in the vicinity which are quite basic to you otherwise. The authorities are quite strict in these aspects and they take special care to make sure that you do not attract unwanted attention with the lavish display of pomp and grandeur. I could not completely disagree with their view. But you do tend to feel deprived once in a while. Early morning is one such time.
I was on a mission which demanded frequent travel within the periphery of what you could call the metropolitan area of country Y and for this purpose I was only entitled to the use of the local metro rail system. I had to be discreet even in doing so. But what ailed me every morning and evening was the fact that I invariably had to do so in the upright standing position. This was not essential for the purpose of being discreet and was surely not imposed upon by the authorities. It was cruelly imposed upon me by the competition that you usually find under those circumstances. I hardly had a chance. The competition for the vacant seat was indeed very stiff and any effort you would put would be turned fruitless in the blink of an eye. For there were already a host of fellow passengers who were on the prowl. No sooner is a seat let out, a gloating candidate would jump on the oppurtunity and deprieve you of the comforts you so well deserve. I was fed up of this regular hassle.
I had to devise a ploy. I am not the one who would be left out in the business of being cunning when the bait is thrown. I spent almost a sleepless night. The mind was working hard and when the mind is working hard, you usually do not interrupt it with unnecessary sleep. Precisely what I did. And then like a flash of bright light, the idea struck. It was a very heckneyed idea. I was almost left wondering why had I not thought of it in an instant. Well, senility does take its toll on the quick wit. In my case it was rather mild though, I would be pround to state. In any case, I managed to get a few hours of quick sleep in the early morning. When I awoke, I was fresh as a daisy, as the saying goes. I was very eager to embark upon my cleverly chalked out plan. I did the usual morning chore nevertheless. Soon I set out on my mission.
The metro station looked much more appealing to my eye. The environment was most congenial. I could see the very meticulously cleaned surroundings and the well thought out entry and exit points. Hardly any passenger would collide with his fellow passenger on his way in or out. The passengers themselves were very courteous. They always waited for the outgoing passengers to disembark before themselves boarding. When the mind is keen it can observe intricate details which is not well appreciated by the naked eye in another mood. And this is precisely what I was experiencing first hand that morning. Their was an air of cheerfulness about me. I whistled. A young girl probably in her early twenties passing by gave me a queer look. I carried on.
I got into the metro and not wasting any more time, started to realize my plan. I carefully scrutinized the probable candidates for my experimentation. There at the corner of the coach were a couple of drunken looking men. I deceptively walked across the coach towards those men. There were not many standing around them probably because they were not very innocuous in their appearances. This did not daunt me a bit. I stood beside them for a while to acclimatise myself with this new environment. The heart was racing with excitement. A station had just passed. I could not wait any longer. I took out the coin and let it drop nonchalantly.
Now many of you who are well familiar with such situations must be aware that the possibility of attaining the temporary ownership of a vacant seat alerts those on the prowl only when you are about to reach a new station. In between they lie dormant. It was this oppurtunity that I was looking for. And no sooner did the coin start to roll, atleast a couple of those drunken pupils flikered, the eyeball followed the trajectory of the coin. He could resist no longer. Like a hawk he pounched on the unsuspecting coin. And oppurtunity presented itself. The sight of the cosy vacant seat made my mouth water. I wasted not a second. The drunkard gave me a long hard look. He was happy though, now that he had the coin all for himself. It was a case of symbiosis, you could not deny.
Only in the very next station, an old lady who had just boarded gave me a very earnest look. And alas, I had to be courteous. With a heavy heart, I was walking the platform when I reached the destination.
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