A man has divided opinions after kicked a pregnant woman out of his pre-booked train seat during a long day of travel.
He shared how was travelling five-hours across the country and had ensured to reserve a seat on each leg of his journey for maximum comfort. However, upon reaching his seat on one of the trains, he found it occupied by a pregnant woman. When he politely informed her that she was in his reserved spot, she acknowledged her mistake but continued to sit there.
Sharing his experience on Reddit, he said: “I say that it’s my seat and could I please sit in it. At this point her partner sitting opposite her starts speaking at me in what I perceive to be an aggressive tone. He suggests I find another seat (which there are none because it’s busy) and I say but I booked that seat and there are no other available seats in the carriage.”
The man further explained how the woman’s partner raised his voice, stating that someone else was occupying their seats and highlighting his partner’s pregnancy. The man, who suffers from a heart defect, responded that everyone has their own health issues and reasons for needing to sit rather than stand for extended periods.
He added: “I ask him to not speak to me in an aggressive tone, and that I will make a complaint. He then starts swearing at me and I ask him to stop. Eventually the woman gets up and allows me to sit there and he continues to berate me saying he hopes I feel good for myself and that I’m quiet now I have my seat, when really I just stopped engaging as I felt there was no point.”
Following the heated exchange, another passenger graciously offered the expectant mother and her partner his seats, arranging them around a table. The passenger added: “He sits his partner down and then laughs at me and points in my face. Eventually when the ticket inspector comes around they are asked to move to their assigned seats and she asks if I’m ok as another passenger had made a complaint on my behalf.”
In quest of an outside perspective on his reaction, he posted the story on social media. Responding to his query, a commenter wrote: “There’s no reason why the husband, as the healthy one, should have stayed in his seat. It’s ridiculous that after hearing that you have a heart defect he didn’t get out of his seat and give it to his wife, allowing you to take yours.
“Even if they couldn’t sit in their seats there was no reason for her to have yours. The husband was being a selfish a**.” Another user chimed in: “You mean kicking a pregnant woman out of your seat. Obviously not in the wrong, don’t let some obnoxious bullies get to you. A third user said: ” A third person questioned: “Why didn’t the man get up to give “his” seat to his pregnant partner. It’s his responsibility to ensure her comfort, not yours.”