‘I Was Settling Into My Morning Commute on the 4 Train’

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Dear Diary:

I was settling into my morning commute on the 4 train from Brooklyn to Manhattan. I had chosen a seat a few feet away from man in a well-tailored suit.

Despite there being many open seats, a woman was standing in front of him with the subway pole in the crook of her arm. She was reading a newspaper while holding it open with both hands. I noticed that the man was staring at the front page.

After a few moments, the woman rustled the paper and folded the front page backward to continue her reading-and-balancing act more easily.

The man let out a quiet sigh and then immediately looked embarrassed when the woman looked down at him.

After a pause, she reopened the paper.

“Where were you reading?” she said.

He pointed to one of the columns.

She readjusted the paper so that the front page remained visible while straightening the inside pages. Then she continued reading her article, and the man continued reading his.

— Jana Loeb