Why I Should Never Get a Train Alone

Nickelback Concert; NIA, Birmingham

26th May, 2009

     I promised you a tale about my very first experiences of a train station, alone. So what the Hell does Nickelback have to do with it, I hear you ask. Okay, my best friend loves them. Absolutely adores them. So when she found out they were bringing their "Dark Horse" tour here, she went insane. She is anyway, but knowing they were going to be in the same country as herself, it sent her loopy. And the only way for her to ever survive this, was for her to go to the concert.


     Nickelback had decided to embrace Birmingham's "National Indoor Arena", which was a train journey away from us. About half an hour to forty-five minutes, give or take. And the date of the gig ended up being on a day when we weren't at Sixth Form (basically school). We got really excited and I sat there amazed that this had stemmed from the birthday gift I gave her.


     It was a homemade CD. I'd put a little Nickelback on there, along with two live tracks from Linkin Park's "Road to Revolution: Live At Milton Keynes" the concert we'd been to, together, the previous year. It was my birthday present and the most amazing day of my life! But I digress.


     Anyway, my dear best friend decided to make this a birthday gift of her own, even though the concert wasn't until May. Now, she comes up with loads of grand plans and I wasn't so sure this was going to occur. Normally, life gets in the way of our plans together ...


     (Bless her. I don't mean anything bad by that. It's just a fact of life.)


     ... so I didn't think this would actually happen. I just nodded and agreed with her as I watched her skip off home.


     Imagine my surprise when she produced tickets and said she would pay for them. I was stunned. Plus, we ended up staying in a motel and she paid for that too. I was in love.


     (KP, I love you!)


     Aaaannnnyyyywaaayyyy ...


     Back to the main point of this story - why I shouldn't be allowed near train stations without adult supervision ...


     Although, technically, I am an adult now. So I could supervise myself, but, still, I suck at train stations.


     Okay, so basically, we were going to Birmingham to see Nickelback. We had gotten a bus to a train station, to be told we needed to get a coach to another, because there was no connecting line from there to Birmingham. So we had tickets for trains/coaches/concerts/hotels. And each other.


     We got to the necessary train station after a lot of messing about and waiting. Waiting is so not fun, when you're all filled up with nervous apprehension and excitement. You just wanna "go, go, go". But we did make it and were left a little confused. Well, I was. I'd never, ever, ever gotten a train on my own and wasn't sure which platform and train we were supposed to be going on. But we walked together to one such platform and waited for a train.


     And that was when it all went wrong.


     Best friend decided to change platform and get on another train to Birmingham. We ran up the stairs and across the bridge and down some stairs to the platform where the train awaited. She ran and jumped on, I hesitated, unsure if it was the train we needed and BAM ...


     The train doors shut.


     I was stood on the platform, staring at my best friend, who was on the train, behind the door, staring at me.


     That was how I stood as the train began to pull away from the platform and head to Birmingham.


     The last thing I saw was my best friend panicking and calling a train attendant down to help her out. Then I saw the train disappear into the far, far, away distance.


     Then I laughed.


     Seriously, now I look back on it, that was a serious sucky situation to be in. I shoulda been scared and crying and stunned. But I wasn't. I found the whole thing rather funny and I laughed. Which is what you normally do upon looking back at said incident.


     I really shoulda been scared, since she had my ticket and the knowledge I needed to get to Birmingham.
 
     And this is exactly the reason I should never, ever, under any circumstance, go to a train station without an adult. 


     Because I hesitate and miss my train.


     Okay, so I was alone on a platform, unaware what that train was, what time the next one was, without a ticket. My phone started vibrating and I answered it, still staring after the Virgin train that had left me behind. Still brain dead. Still laughing.


     "Hello," I said.


     I was greeted with, "Why didn't you get on?"


     "I don't know. The door was closing," I replied, blinking out of my stupor as I heard the panic in BF's voice.


     "What are you going to do? I've got your ticket," she said. It was then I was alerted to the fact I had no ticket.


     "Ah."


     "Go find an attendant or something. I'll talk to someone here. Call me back," and with that, she hung up.


     I looked around the platform and, I am not kidding you, it was empty. Devoid of all life. I walked to the other side of the platform.
 
     Nothing.


     I walked back.


     Nothing.


     Eventually, a Virgin train guy came out of a little office thing and I walked over to him. By then, I had received a text from BF.


     It said: Another train comes in ten minutes.


     I thought, "That's alright then. Better tell someone."


     "Hello," I smiled. "My friend and I have been separated by a train's doors, and she has my train ticket. We're supposed to be going to Birmingham together. Do you know when the next one will arrive?"


     "An hour," he told me.


     I froze and looked at him.


     "An hour. She said ten minutes," I stuttered.


     "No, an hour," and then he pointed to the screen above me, before walking off and leaving me alone.


     I went and sat down, staring glumly at the empty platform, whilst still finding this funny. Secretly. I pulled my phone out and jammed her number in. She picked up on the first ring.


     "Well?"


     "An hour."


     "What's an hour?"


     "An hour to the next train," I stated, flinching as a Fast Train whizzed through the station. "And I still don't have a ticket."


     "I thought he'd give you a new one. He should have," she said.


     "Nah, he walked off and left me."


     "Okay, okay. I'm outside Rugby and I'll be in Birmingham in about half an hour. I'll meet you at the station," she said. "I'll just phone my mum now," she added, before hanging up.


     That was when I realised I had no idea where I was going or what train station I was supposed to get off at.


     I was still in a "finding it funny" stupor.


     I ended up sitting down and reading a revision book on "The Tempest" because my English A-Level exam was coming up soon. Might as well make some good come of this, seeing as I was stuck in a train station and all, and not likely to do much revision later, at the concert.


     An hour later, I had befriended an old lady who was getting on the same train as me. The Virgin had come back too and given me a piece of paper that said I could ride the train. Things were looking up. BF had told me where to go and promised me she'd be waiting, I had a (make shift) ticket and a new FRIEND. Yeah, things were good.


     You'll be relieved to know I made it to Birmingham in one piece, an hour later then BF. And I had a great time at the concert. I might go into more detail at a later date.


     Oh, and whilst reading this, I found out I'm in the "Burn It To The Ground" video, that was filmed at said concert.


     Go to YouTube, type in "Burn It To The Ground" music video and stop at 01:49. You'll see me (the one with her mouth wide open - that's all you can see of me) and my BF (she's the blond).


     I'm in a blue shirt.


     Don't forget to point at laugh at the idiot (me).