Doors Open On The Right

  Greg touched his fare card against the turnstile sensor. It took a moment to register, but eventually it dinged in acceptance and Greg walked through. He trudged down the ramp to the train platform in no particular hurry. He looked up at the display to check the time. The next train was due in two minutes. It flashed again, displaying the date. Jan 1, 2099. 

  Greg shrugged. The display was always malfunctioning. Last week it read Jan 1, 1899. A man in a full suit and top hat had asked him the time before tipping the hat and wandering on. It had been a strange day. 

  A few feet from where Greg stood, a woman sitting on the bench bent down to adjust a knob on her leg. She clicked it to the left three places and her whole leg began to vibrate.
  "Ooh, not again!" the woman cried, smacking her thigh. The leg stopped vibrating. She glanced at Greg and blushed. 

  Behind her, a small robot zipped around the train platform picking up trash muttering, "Careless, careless, careless, careless" before tossing the trash onto the tracks. It was also malfunctioning; it should not have been able to speak. 

  The display flashed once more, showing the train was due. As it came around the corner, the sitting woman stood up and grabbed her purse. She ruffle her hair and the color shifted from a dark brown to a brilliant green. She brushed a few strands out of her face and blue streaked through the green. 

  The train came speeding around the corner, a magnificent white machine, with "From Here To There!" painted in red along the side. It glided soundlessly on its single rail, a model of efficiency for the modern commuter. "This is Clark and Lake," a calm woman's voice announced.

  But Greg did not notice the details of this glorious new train. He did not notice the pretty girl's hair, or her bionic leg. He did not notice her shy smile when it had malfunctioned, nor did he pay any attention to the messy little robot spewing trash onto the rails. Greg stepped off the platform and fell onto the tracks. He landed just as the train was slowing to a halt, but it did not make a difference.

  "Doors open on the right at Clark and Lake," could still be heard above the screams.