The unwelcome passenger was later thrown outside of the bus, just outside one of the petrol stations between Lyon and Belgium, three hundred kilometres away from the original departure point and a further three hundred to Cay and Judas’s. Cay had called the operator after smelling tobacco from the man when he re-emerged from the bus’s washroom. Good riddance.
Although the man was an ignorant fool who made foolish mistakes, Cay could not help sympathizing the man. He was an inconsiderate being that deserved to be treated slightly unequal as the rest, but nonetheless his inconsideration stemmed from the lack of care of the cruel world he was in.
Cay and Judas were startled at the same time as soon as the operator called out to the passengers who were supposed to make their descent from the bus stairs and onto Belgium’s soil. The two made no hasty movements to stand up from their respective seats to begin their small departure from the bus, and from the drama happened a few hours ago. The strangers that rode with them were visibly tired as well and everyone followed a slow rhythm of sliding backpacks and handbags onto shoulders, stretching their cramped bodies, and queued in an orderly fashion until reaching the exit.
They did not expect a rather chilly morning near the heart of Brussels (eleven degrees Celsius instead of eighteen, their phone’s weather forecast showed them a week ago), a brisk walk to the Gare Du Nord where operational heaters and chain stores was a good thought. The two stayed within the station with Judas holding an espresso while Cay was indulging on cheap café latte.
Cay, being suddenly cheerful, offered his companion a stale sandwich procured along with his coffee and suggested staying in for another hour for a complete refreshment. The faint eyebags on Judas were more apparent when they had first departure from London, he stayed silent throughout most of the time sitting down on the wood-paneled bench.
Not to their surprise, the major brand shops on both sides have not been opened yet as time had been barely nine in the morning. Gloomy clouds cut off the would-be-warming sunlight, leaving a cold and congested atmosphere surrounding everyone. They arrived at the Grand Palace after passing the national theatre and furthermore shops, they had expected a longer journey.
There were guides with opened-up umbrellas shadowing the tip of their heads, a sign of starting tours. The two obliged themselves to talk to one of the guides who went by the name Jack, who spoke Dutch, French, and slightly accented English that sounded inviting.
The Grand Palace was a square surrounded by guildhalls and other famous establishments of older times, explained Jack. Cay caught sight of one of the guildhalls with a Flemish-finish on the top, its’ distinctive square-shaped façade leading eventually to a blunt tip reminded him of temporary rises for the top three contestants to step on, indicating from third to first place after the competition.
The three were having a solemn conversation when crowds of foreign tourists started pouring into the plaza, with more tour guides later showing up to greet the ones without. Jack’s group looked rather measly in comparison to the tour guides gathering large numbers of Chinese tourists, directing and explaining in a crude Chinese accent.
By the time of the start of the tour, Jack managed to invite five more visitors (most of them came separately) and began his introduction of the place. “Let’s start here.”, he said.
*
The routinised work at the petrol station had not been hard as he expected to be. Although tedious in the long-run, having a paid job was a good thought for Cay.
Mr. Anapaly, the employer said that the work scope only required regular maintenance check on the Costa coffee machine, which situated at the end of the store just apposite the till and to follow the procedure when it came to deal with customers and complaints. Cay thanked his past work experience as the role was a comfortable fit for him. He did not mind much of the pay at all, compared to receiving regular living expenses provided by his parents overseas.
The store supervisor, Raluca, had been overseeing Cay’s work progress and acted as his mentor. She had a roundish face and an Eastern European look, a stoic body due to years of stress and an unhealthy diet. She claimed that she had been trying to be a vegetarian, Cay hoped the extra pair of hands could help her relief from extra shifts.
There was an electric heater stalled within the office and the room was free for any work personnel to use when Mr.Anapaly was not around, so long as nobody tampered with the surveillance footages or tried to break into the safe. The laxed workspace was not the ideal to Cay’s imagination it would be, but who would complain since the pay followed the minimum wage system?
His careful need for conversation and quick adaptability had led Cay to familiarize himself with Raluca and the rest of his colleagues whom he met only during shift transitions. He would not expect any local English to be working at a filling station, had any worked here would serve only to be a short-term work and not a permanent one. He was considered an appropriate candidate to help fuel cars and to listen to car owner complaints.
Jenna had been satisfied, if not happy that he was in his first ever job outside of Malaysia; Cay was a man who could be happy to be in a better (financial) situation than some of the Asian classmates who were dependant over their rich families. He was optimistic that he would find a better or well-suited role for himself outside of the station and within the city centre. For now, arduous work and a stable pay would have to suffice, he never minded the prospect of working as a customer assistant then.
“You’re a quick-learner. Hope you’ll stick around longer than some of the past workers.”, said Raluca.
“The station looks like there aren’t enough people to take on the shifts.”, Cay responded.
“Mr.Anapaly never paid well, but it’s just a filling station after all.”
“So why work at the station?”, she added.
Cay gave a thoughtful look for a moment, then said: “For starters, it’s easy to commute to work, and I just need to rely less on my parents. Staying in the UK isn’t cheap for us Malaysians.”
Raluca chuckled at the last sentence.
“That’s why I’m working here, Cypruss isn’t really the place where anyone can progress to somewhere.”
Their chattering was interrupted by the delivery lorry backing into the back of the filling station.
“Oh, here comes the delivery. We’ll talk later.
“Sure.”, the two went to the back through the walkway and opened the door to let the man in with the first stock. Bath was under gloomy clouds, Cay thought it would rain in no time.
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