(I’m taking an interstate overnight train trip. I have booked a sleeper cabin to ensure I get a decent sleep. I join the train a few hours into the journey, only to find the door to my cabin locked.)

Me: “Excuse me, but I can’t get into my cabin.”

Train Staff: “Oh, sorry. Sometimes the staff who make up the cabins accidentally lock the door. Let me fix that for you.”

(After checking my ticket and confirming that it is my cabin, she unlocks the door and leaves. I walk in to find a woman already there playing on her phone.)

Woman: “What the h***? Get out!”

Me: “What? This is my cabin.”

Woman: “No, it’s not. Get out!”

Me: “My ticket says this is my cabin. I think you’re in the wrong one.”

Woman: “I don’t give a f*** what your ticket says; this is now my cabin. You’re in car D, seat 8. Now, f*** off.”

(I realise that she booked a normal seat and then just found an empty cabin:)

Me: “Look, lady. I paid for this cabin. You need to get out and let me get some sleep.”

Woman: “I don’t give a f*** what you paid for; this is my cabin now and I’m not leaving. Now, f*** off!”

(I decide to get a staff member. I find the same lady who unlocked the door for me and explain the situation. She grabs the head staff member.)

Head Staff: *again unlocking the door* “Ma’am, this isn’t your cabin. I need to see your ticket.”

Woman: “You wouldn’t expect a pregnant woman to sit in a small, uncomfortable seat the whole way, would you? She’s only on here for a few hours. Surely she can sit in the seat and let a poor, pregnant woman have a bed?”

Head Staff: “Ma’am, if you wanted a bed, you should have booked a cabin. This is this lady’s cabin. I need you to vacate it immediately.”

Woman: “Well, too bad. I’m not moving, and if you touch me, I’ll have you arrested for assaulting a pregnant woman and sue you for everything you’re worth. Now, f*** off and let me sleep.”

(She then slams and locks the door. All three of us are stunned.)

Head Staff: “I’m so sorry about this.” *to other staff* “Take her to the buffet and get her anything she wants on the house. I’ll sort this out.”

(I get a coffee and a sandwich and wait. As we pull into the next station, an announcement is made:)

Announcement: “Due to unforeseen circumstances, we will be delayed here for a while. Please feel free to stretch your legs, but please do not leave the platform.”

(I got out to have a cigarette and walk around, and I saw the two transit cops and four police officers escorting the woman off the train in handcuffs. It turns out that she’d refused to go back to the seat she’d paid for and had assaulted the transit cops who tried to move her luggage from the cabin. The train was delayed by nearly an hour while this took place and I had to wait for another half-hour while my cabin was cleaned and remade.)