The two men exchanged fists on the platform, missing frequently, and she watched them from the subway car. It only took a few garbled words for them to begin swinging, which had startled her. It seemed strange in retrospect, but she had never seen an altercation turn physical in her life. The closest had been her aunt smashing a plate at Thanksgiving when she was sixteen. Could problems really be solved like that? Certainly none of her own. If only.
The train lurched forward and began to distance her from them. One of them landed a blow to his opponent’s temple, sending him toppling to the ground. She saw him raise a leg to kick and then they were out of sight.
The arrival sign claimed fifteen minutes until she reached her stop. From there it would be another ten to their apartment. Her apartment, really. A brief, refreshing walk through the night, bathed in gold from streetlights and hugged by the deepening blue of the twilight sky. She put her earbuds in and didn’t play any music, listening instead to the conversation of the couple seated next to her. Something about a brother coming to visit, and someone not being happy about it.
She looked up at the arrival sign – fourteen minutes. It was going by quickly. Maybe there would be a delay.