500 Words 2024/25: read a finalist's story from the 8-11 category

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This story was chosen as a top 50 finalist for 500 Words 2024/25.

Remember, spelling, punctuation and grammar are not taken into account for a 500 Words story, therefore all the top 50 stories have been published how they were submitted.

A TRAM-atic Journey by Ash B.

I was rushing for a tram, I needed to get to Piccadilly at half one. I could see the tram in the distance.

I sprinted to the ticket machine and frantically jabbed the buttons 'Authorised…printing…FAULT Out of paper' it said. My brain exploded "WHY?!" I screamed. The tram came to a halt, the doors opened. I braced myself and stepped on to the tram without a ticket. "Phew, it's a busy tram" I thought, though suddenly at the next stop everyone got off. Sweat drained down my face like a broken gutter. Thoughts exploded in my head. I was having a panic attack. What if I got asked for my ticket? And that's when the Ticket Inspector got on.

The Inspector was a tall man with a stern face who looked like he'd be inspecting things all his life. He had a neat moustache and an immaculate uniform which looked like it had been washed every day. He saw me and I thought "here we go", then the tram stopped again.

An old lady with five miniature schnauzers boarded, between me and the Inspector. He asked her for her ticket but before she could reply, her false teeth shot out like a bullet, splatted on the Inspector's blazer and landed on the shiny metallic floor. He reached down to pick them up. One of the dogs looked up at him and smiled with the old lady's teeth in its mouth, then bit the Inspector who cried in pain. He grabbed the teeth and put them in the lady's mouth. He was furious, but who was to blame? The dog or the lady? The dog bit him, but with her teeth!

The Inspector moved on towards me. Just then the tram pulled in at another station and a man got on. He was carrying a baby, nappy bags, toys and other bits. When the Inspector asked him for his ticket he started rummaging. A bottle full of milk squirted in one of the dogs faces, they ran around barking, their leads twisting like noodles on a fork. A nappy bag bounced off another dogs head. I was relieved it was taking so long but, he suddenly repacked his bags and showed his ticket with surprising skills. Surely I was done-for now?

The Inspector walked towards me, his brogues clip clopping on the floor. I was frozen to the spot like someone had superglued me.

Then the tram stopped. My saviours arrived, a protest about dirty rivers. There were around thirty people chanting and waving banners. One person was wearing a toilet costume, another was waving what looked like a giant papier-mâché sausage. I saw my chance. Someone near me was handing out toilet rolls, I grabbed 2 as the tram stopped. I waved them in the air and chanted "SAVE OUR RIVERS!" and marched off the tram with the crowd.

The Inspector was nowhere to be seen. I thought "Thank goodness for the strangeness of strangers!"

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