Dubious Moves

He sat on the hard platform seat, and was struck by a sudden wave of indecisiveness. Almost unconsciously, he rummaged in his pockets and pulled out the day’s Sudoku clipping.

He scorned people who tossed coins for a decision. How could one ascribe to a random flip the decision to follow one’s gut feeling or otherwise ? He prided himself on the Sudoku system. He’d scan the whole puzzle quickly, and then make two guesses. Then work through the puzzle quick time, and if his guesses were wrong, the numbers wouldn’t match. That meant his instinct was wrong that day ; that his present intuition would lead to other decisions that eventually would engender conflict. Every decision in the end had to stand the test of others linked with it; he felt that the Sudoku system told him if his instinct was on the ball.

So he looked over the puzzle, and pencilled in two numbers. Started working on the puzzle, and had almost reached a conclusive stage when he suddenly smiled to himself. He did not need this Sudoku, he realized. He knew the answer already ... that this particular decision had no links forward that could possibly matter. He replaced the pencil, and crumpled the Sudoku and threw it away.

And as the 3-17 Fast to Borivili roared in, stood up, and walked off the platform.