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London Zoo
by Jonathan Tham “Regent’s Park. Exit here for London Zoo. Please mind the gap between the train and the platform edge.” As the doors squealed shut and we shuddered into motion, I couldn’t help but feel like the other passengers had missed their stop. I was pressed against a heavyset banker; from the grey creases in his suit and depth of his double chin, I half expected him to extend a swollen palm and introduce himself as “Mr. Hippopotamus”. Tourists were perched by the doors and their foreign cawing aroused amusement from the workman, who was grinning like a hyena, wiping sticky hands on his paint-splattered trousers. The chimpanzee children bounced off my legs; in desperation their mother reigned them in, tugging on the straps of their oversized backpacks. The platform for Oxford Circus blurred into sight and I cast a look of contempt upon the drove of beasts shuffling towards me. When Dante reflected on the nine circles of hell, he never envisioned that their gates would be on the intersection of the Bakerloo and Central lines. I braced myself as the doors opened. The hordes poured forth, pressing into every crack and recess of the steel compartment. The air was moist with perspiration and I craned my neck, gasping for oxygen. An elbow thrust itself into my gut and I reeled, my figure contorted into a sweating tangle. My head collided with a solid shoulder and I released a disoriented grunt. Turning around, I was confronted by clenched teeth and a glare of disgust. The ferocity in the man’s eyes jolted me back to reality. “You fucking moron!” I stared blankly at him, was he for real? “Watch where you’re going – are you fucking blind?” I decided to ignore his brazen idiocy and slid to the other side of the carriage, nursing my throbbing scalp. The creature followed, thrusting the other passengers aside like a rhino smashing through a herd of cattle. “Oi, I was talking to you!” he spat. His breath warmed my face - it smelt of smoked fish and excrement. His arm was pinned against mine and I could feel him shaking, his wrath reverberating through my bones. There was a shrill call. My antagonist jerked round and the furrows of hatred on his brow relaxed into a smooth red surface. Head bowed and shoulders hunched, he mumbled indifferent “excuse me’s” to the other passengers as he skulked away. He stopped by the chimpanzees and looked sheepishly up at a large lady who was shaking her head. She released an incomprehensible shriek at him, the crimson plumage of her dress flapping about as she gesticulated. His eyes fixed themselves glumly on the floor. I gripped the railing tightly as we skidded to a halt. The door opened and a smile spread across my face as I strode out of the enclosure. |
Jonathan completed an Economics degree before moving to London to work in a bank. He finds writing a creative outlet from busy city life. Jonathan's work has been published by Storgy Magazine and he maintains a short story blog which you can follow here:
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