All my things are packed. The work day is over. From where I sit, I see people leaving, carrying lunch boxes and tubed newspapers. There's just one more day to go. The weekend, in its bright tempting glory, waits on the other side.

I am waiting for my friends to wrap things up, so we can walk to the train station together. It's a short walk, but it feels trying to walk it alone. Sometimes, we don't even talk to each other, we just trudge along in silence. But it's so much nicer than being silent by yourself.

The street lights will come on and we'll leave the building soon, to eat buttered bread with tea, collectively looking forward to the end of the week.