Riding the Train
Ren English Readers · Level A2
Hana stood at the entrance to the train station. She looked at her watch and grumbled. "Where is everybody? We have to catch the train in five minutes."
She saw many people going through the gates. Businessmen carrying briefcases, women wearing business suits and students in uniforms.
"Sorry, Hana," Sora said, running up. "I woke up late." He was breathing hard. "Mom was angry at me."
"It's okay. Ren and Momo aren't here yet, and the train leaves in five minutes."
"They are always late," said Sora. He bit his nails.
Hana slapped his hand. "I told you to stop that."
"Sorry. Did you find the ghost at the shrine yesterday?" Sora asked.
"No. When we got back to the shrine, it was after five o'clock. The shrine was closed."
"Thank goodness," said Sora.
"Ren and I are going back next Saturday. Do you want to come?" Hana asked.
Sora shook his head. "No, thank you. One time was enough."
Momo and Ren stepped into the train station.
"The best snack in the world is crisps," said Ren. "My favourite flavour is cheese and onion. I can't find it in Japan."
"You have to try Umai-bo. The Corn Potage flavour is delicious," said Momo.
"Really? Where can I buy it?"
"At a convenience store," said Hana. She was frowning. "Do you have your IC card, Ren? The train is coming soon."
Ren took out a green card from his pocket. "My Mom got it for me yesterday. She said it was like a train ticket. What do I do with it?"
"Do you see a glass panel on the gate with the letters IC on it?" Hana asked.
Ren nodded.
"You tap your card on the top IC reader panel and go through the gate," said Hana.
Ren tapped his card and went through, but the gate turned red and didn't open. "Oops. What did I do?"
"Go out and try again," Hana said.
Ren went out. The red light turned off. He tried again and tapped his card. This time it worked, and he went through the gate. Sora followed him.
"Cool. We have something like this in London, but it doesn't work as well," said Ren.
"We have to hurry. The train we need is up those stairs." Hana pointed to a long set of stairs at the other side of the station.
The four children walked quickly to the stairs and up onto the platform. The train wasn't there yet, but many people were waiting in several lines.
"What are they doing?" asked Ren.
"They are waiting for the train," said Hana.
"Yes. People usually wait in line to get on the train," said Momo.
"Wow. They usually push on the train in London," said Ren.
"They do that in Tokyo, but not here. Look out, the train is coming." Hana pointed to a red train.
It pulled into the station, and the doors opened. Ren saw a lot of people standing in the doorway. Some people in business suits stepped off. The people waiting for the train stepped on.
"Come on, Ren. Let's get on," said Hana.
The four children got in the back of the line and pushed onto the train. "Is it always this full?" asked Ren.
"Sometimes there are more people," said Momo.
Sora was at the end of the line. "Maybe I should take the next train."
"No. You'll be late for school," said Hana.
"Here." Ren pushed his way into the train, and two people standing by the door moved deeper into the train. "Thank you."
Sora stepped onto the train, and the doors closed behind him.
"Let's go into the middle of the train," said Hana. "It usually takes twenty minutes to get to our stop."
Away from the doors, there was more space. "Why do people always stand at the doors?" asked Ren.
"They want to get off quickly," said Hana. "It's annoying. People can't get on or off, but many do it."
The train went faster, and Ren held the strap from the ceiling. Sora reached for it, but his arm was too short. The train jerked, and he fell into a businessman.
"Sorry," Sora said. His face was red. He looked at the floor.
"Be careful," the businessman said.
"Hold onto my bag," said Momo. "The train stops quickly, and you don't want to fall over."
"Thank you, Momo."
She smiled, looked out the window and tapped her finger against her leg.
"What are you doing?" asked Sora.
"I'm practicing a song," said Momo. "I don't like trains. They are very crowded. Singing makes it easier."
Sora stepped away from Momo to give her more space.
"You're okay. I like riding the train with my friends. It feels safer."
"I will protect you," Sora said.
Momo smiled and hugged Sora.
Ren watched the buildings pass by. The businessman's phone rang. He took it from his bag and started talking in a quiet voice. He quickly put his phone back in his bag.
"It's not nice to stare at people," Hana said.
"I know, but he has an interesting phone case. It looks like a Pokémon."
"It is very cute, but you still shouldn't stare. You also shouldn't talk on the phone on the train."
"Why?" asked Ren. "The trains in London are always noisy."
"Really? Here, they are usually quiet."
Ren looked at Hana. "Thank you for explaining everything to me. Japan is still very new to me. I don't always know the rules."
Hana's face turned a little red. She smiled. "It's my pleasure." She looked at her watch and bit her lip.
"It's fun to watch people on the train," said Ren. "Why are those two men sleeping?"
"They work in an office in the city, but it takes an hour to get there from here. Many people sleep on the train," Hana said.
"In London, if I slept on the train, a thief could steal my money," said Ren.
"Japan is much safer." Hana smiled.
"I see. Wow. That man is reading a book. I get sick if I try to read in the car," said Ren.
Hana nodded. "Me too, but the train ride is very smooth."
"Yes, it is. I like this."
"What is that boy in the yellow hat carrying? He's younger than Sora," said Ren.
Hana looked behind Ren. "Oh. He has an eki-ben."
"What's that?"
"It's a special lunch box sold at many stations. Each one is different. Many people like them. He's sitting with his mother. They both have an eki-ben. Maybe they are going on a trip," said Hana.
"Are they going to eat it on the train?" Ren asked.
Hana shook her head. "No. It's bad manners to eat on the train. On the Tokkyu reserved-seat train, people can eat."
"Why is that woman putting on makeup on the train?"
"Some people are in a hurry. It's bad manners, too, but many people do." Hana sighed.
A voice came from the overhead intercom. "The next stop is Koen-mae. Please remember to take your bags with you when you leave the train."
"Who's that?" asked Ren.
"That's the station announcement," said Momo. "We have two more stations until our stop."
"What stop do we get off the train?" asked Ren.
"Our stop is Gakko-mae," said Momo. "Many students will get off then."
The train slowed down.
"What's happening?" said Sora. His voice was small. Momo took his hand. "There are too many people, and it's hot in here."
Momo squeezed Sora's hand. "Don't worry. We are close to the station."
The train stopped. Ren looked out the window. "I don't see the station."
Hana looked at her watch. "Oh no. We are going to be late for school."
A voice came from the overhead intercoms. "There was a small accident on the train tracks. We will move in a few minutes. Thank you for waiting."
"What kind of accident?" Sora asked. "Maybe the police were chasing a thief?"
"I don't think so," said Hana. "The conductor would have said something."
"I don't want to be late for my first day of school," said Ren. "Maybe we should get off the train and walk."
"I hate being late, too," said Hana.
"Don't worry. We are still about five minutes from school by train," said Momo. "The station is far from the school. It takes ten minutes to walk. If we walk, we will be late. What time is it?" she asked Hana.
"My watch says seven fifty-five," said Hana. "We have to be inside the gates at eight thirty."
Momo smiled. "We have a lot of time. If we are late, what should we do?"
"We could run there," said Ren.
"I don't like running," said Momo. "We could walk fast."
Hana nodded. "That's a good idea. We can always tell the teacher what happened."
"What if they don't believe us?" said Sora. He bit his fingernails.
"Don't worry. If the train is late, we can get a ticket from the station. We can give it to our teacher," said Momo.
"They do?" said Ren. "Wow. I hope the train is late. I want to get one of those tickets."
"Really?" the other three children asked Ren.
"Just kidding." Ren smiled.
Sora smiled. "Those are good ideas. If we are late, we can get the ticket and run."
Ren stuck out his hand and made a fist. Sora bumped it.
The voice came out over the intercom again. "Sorry for the wait. A car stopped on the train tracks. The workers moved it. We will move shortly."
"See. No problem," said Hana. She looked at her watch again and bit her lip.
Ren and Sora shrugged. They started laughing.
"What's so funny?" asked Momo.
"Nothing, really," said Ren. "This is my first day, so I don't want to be late, but you are more worried.
"I hate being late," said Hana. "It makes me feel strange."
The train moved into the station, and twenty people got off.
"We get off at the next stop," said Momo.
The train started moving again.
Hana looked at her watch. "Let's get closer to the doors. When they open, we can get out quickly. We still have fifteen minutes to get to school."
"No problem," said Ren.
The four children moved to the center of the train and waited for the announcement. "The next stop is Gakko-mae. Please remember to take all your bags and things with you. Again, sorry about the wait and thank you for riding the train."
"Sora, where's your bag?" Ren asked.
Sora turned around. "Oh no! I lost it. Maybe a thief took it."
"Where did you have it before?" asked Momo.
"Over there." Sora pointed to the middle of the train.
"I don't see it. What colour is it?" asked Ren.
"Red." Sora bit his nail.
"Is that it?" Hana pointed to a red bag sitting on the floor of the train next to a pole in the center. It was under the seat.
The train stopped moving.
"The doors are opening. Please stand back." The voice came over the intercom.
"Yes, it is," Sora said. He ran to his bag and picked it up. There were many people in front of him.
"I can't see you. Hurry, Sora," Momo said.
"Don't run," said Hana. She and Momo got off the train. Ren waited in the doorway for Sora to come.
The man with the Pokémon phone pushed Ren off the train. He fell on the hard platform.
"Hey! Be careful!" Ren said in a loud voice.
The man didn't say anything and ran for the stairs.
More people stepped off the train.
"Are you okay?" Hana asked. "We should tell someone he pushed you."
"No, I'm fine. That was my fault. It's bad manners to stand in the door," said Ren. "I guess some things are the same as in London." He looked around. "Where is Sora?"
"Here I am." Sora held up his bag. "I found it."
"Excellent, Sora." Ren put his hand on the smaller boy's shoulder.
Hana looked at her watch. "Oh no. We have ten minutes to get to school. We should run."
"Good idea. Let's go down the stairs first," said Momo. "It's dangerous to run on them."
The four children went down the stairs and tapped their cards on the ticket gate.
"Which way do we go?" asked Ren.
"Turn right," said Hana. "The school is at the end of the street. Let's run."
The four children ran to the school. The weather was warm. When they got to the school, they were out of breath.
"I hate running," said Momo.
"We made it," said Sora. He took big breaths.
"What time is it?" asked Ren.
Hana looked at her watch and up at the clock on the top of the school. Her face turned red.
"What is it?" asked Ren.
"My watch is wrong. The clock on the school says eight twenty. We didn't need to run," she said in a quiet voice.
Momo and Sora frowned.
Ren laughed. "We're early?"
Hana nodded.
"That's great. The train ride was fun, and I learned a lot. Now we have time to explore the school. Can you show me to my class, Hana?"
"No problem." Hana looked at Momo and Sora. "Are you angry?"
Momo crossed her arms. "Maybe a little. You are always worried about time, but we weren't late. Tomorrow I'm bringing my watch."
"Me too," said Sora.
"I'm sorry," said Hana.
Ren put his hand on Hana's shoulder. "It's okay. I am often late. It's nice to arrive early today."
"Thank you, Ren," said Hana.
"I'm happy too. I was worried about coming today, but we got here on time," said Sora.
"I'm okay. I just don't like running or the train," said Momo. "Let's get some corn potage Umai Bo after school. That will help me feel better."
"Sounds good," said the other three at the same time.
The four children laughed and went into the school grounds.
Ren looked at the building and made a fist. "I will have a good day."