As I get close to the ticket barriers and the crowd of frantic Christmas travellers all trying to jam their tickets into the machines or tap their travel cards, I can see Anna waving at me. It’s hard to miss her mass of black hair and bright pink lipstick.
A queue has formed for the ticket barrier. I’m staring down at my ticket getting ready for my turn to go through the barrier and wondering whether I am making the right decision about meeting Anna. Everything feels wrong. This was a quick decision I made in a moment of madness on a train which was about to get stuck in a blizzard. Shouts behind me make me jolt. Someone slams into me from behind. A piercing scream fills my ears. Time slows down as I see the side of the ticket barrier come rushing towards my head. I try to put my arms up but it’s too late. The world around me goes black.
‘He’s opening his eyes,’ shrieks a familiar female voice. ‘Rory, it’s me, Anna.’
Everything is blurry. Where the hell am I? Blinking as fast as I can I wait for the world to become clearer. Hang on, the blinking is making my head hurt. Oh, God, my head has a ring of hot, searing pain around it. The voice of the station announcer telling me about the delayed train on platform seven is making me wince. Can someone please tell them to stop talking? Am I in a train station?
‘Rory – can you hear me?’ Anna is bending over me. Her long black hair tentacles are brushing my face. ‘The paramedics are on their way.’
Paramedics? Am I injured? ‘No,’ I mutter and try to lift my head off the cold surface.
A male voice from behind me is talking fast. ‘Stop him from moving.’
Anna is towering over me. ‘Rory, stay still. You’ve hit your head.’
‘What?’
A second familiar voice breaks my confused state. ‘Alfie, look its Rory from the train. What's he doing on the floor?’
Everything is flooding back to me. I am at King’s Cross station. I was waiting to get through the ticket barrier when someone rugby tackled me from behind and rammed my head against the metal stand.
Coldness is starting to engulf my body. The pain from my head is making me feel sick. I need to get up.
‘Lay back down, Rory,’ says Anna, pinning me down while looking over her shoulder. ‘The paramedics are here for you.’
‘Where?’ I croak.
She cranes her head. ‘Oh… they look like they’re seeing to a pregnant lady.’
‘What?’
I struggle again and once more I am restrained. ‘A little bit longer,’ sighs Anna.
‘Seriously?’ I can’t lie here any longer. It’s uncomfortable and I need some painkillers.
Anna nods. ‘Rory, you need to get checked out.’
‘How long was I out for?’ It felt like a long time to me.
Anna shrugs. ‘A few seconds.’
‘Oh, is there any blood?’
She grins. ‘Nope, just a huge egg shape on the side of your head.’
The searing pain in my head is getting intense. ‘Any sign of the paramedics?’
My heart sinks as she shakes her head.
With a gloved hand she holds back some of her black hair, preventing it from falling on my face. ‘I’m so glad we’ve met each other again, Rory.’
This is not the time for casual conversation. My head feels like it’s about to break in half like the way Emily cracks open her Easter eggs.
‘Look, I know this is not the best time to talk to you…’
She can say that again. Clamping my lips tight shut I grimace and try to suppress the vomit which is waiting to shoot out of my mouth.
‘I’ve been wanting to tell you something. It’s important, Rory, and I need to say it.’
