The Next Train
He arrives at the station, late.
He knows he is late
because he is wearing blue fur slippers
and carrying an empty case.
A woman with a full set
of heat-sealed cheese rolls
flirts with the tannoy. "Hello, my lover,"
she calls. The tannoy says
"The next train to arrive at
platform five has a message for you.
We apologise for any inconvenience."
He puts his head to his hand.
He eats the first cheese roll
like a veteran of spaghetti westerns,
the one they dub. (Just that, dub).
His mouth is soon a mess of bread.
His bandolier has no bullets
but it turns heads. Men in maroon
direct him over the bridge,
whispering into their walkie-talkies.
The train is waiting, after all.
His slippers are silent, like sub-titles.
There's a spare cheese roll
in his case. It is just in case.