Just smile and say 'No'

I used to be able to do it.

Just say 'NO'.

I've often berated other people for being pushovers and questioned them about why it was so difficult for them to stand up for themselves. I would tell them to just be polite, but firm and throw in a smile for good measure.

And then today I was one of them.

At an event whose description is really not relevant to this story, I met a boy from India.

Like me, he had come to London in September and like me, he is a student.

But that's about where the similarity ends.

This guy is obnoxious. He's chatty, but not really what you could call friendly. He smiles a lot, but there's a glimmer of someone that has the potential to be very, VERY annoying. And of course, the clincher - he has an opinion on everything, especially when he isn't asked for one.

So really, when he asked me for my number on the way back home I should have just said 'No' and left it at that.

Instead, I became one of the 'them' people.

I gave him my number.

Moreover, I gave him the right number.

When I got off the train, I was thinking of all the excuses I will have to make when he calls, and how I really must find out if I have a call -block facility on my phone.

I was mentally kicking myself for not thinking of a great excuse as to why I don't hand out my number.

The girl I was travelling with then says to me, 'You know, you should just smile and say No next time'.