The most intimate encounters I've had with strangers were during subway rides back home during rush hour. People are packed into trains, limbs puzzling their way through open stretches of space to find something to hold on to, to keep balance. Everyone is squeezed in until at last, you are surrounded by people, the tiniest of inches away from you.The person facing you averts his gaze. He is so close that one step would mean you were on top of him. You turn your head slightly towards the other direction and nearly catch a mouthful of hair in your mouth from the women standing beside you. For a fleeting moment you make eye contact with the middle aged man to the far left, broken by the mutual avoidance of awkward eye contact.
Everyone endures this uncomfortable intimacy to get to their destinations, patiently waiting for their stop, and deftly maneuvering for those who need to get out of the train before them.
This affair is brief when finally, it's your stop and you are freed, able to carry on towards your other affairs.
Who knew public transportation could be this intimate?
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