I am abiding by the code

Pick a public space, probably any public space, but one where people are generally quiet. Like I once worked in an office where all the desks were in one big loft. This meant that, for the most part, people talked quietly--especially when I say "worked" and I mean "interned" so I was not going to break the silence.

Have you ever been in one of these places and then someone else breaks the literally unspoken rule to shut the fuck up and not talk across the space? Like when I was working in the quiet room someone spoke to me in a normal and loud voice, and I kind of whispered back, thinking "Umm hello, why are you talking in that normal voice?!" and then she responded (outloud) "WHY are you whispering?" Because I am abiding by the code, which you refuse to respect.

This usually happens in a subway car. You'll be sitting diagonally from someone you got on the train with since there weren't enough seats, and then they'll talk across the space and laugh or joke or do something else dumb. You don't want to respond because since you're so considerate but you have to.

This happened to be recently on the subway, when I ran into someone I made out with in like seventh grade but haven't seen since. It was go-to-work time in the morning--something I can't generally relate to--and he said, "Hi, are you on your way to work?" and I was like, "No, I'm just watching everyone else go."

PS: Last post I decided to see what it was like not cursing. I feel like it was an ineffectual and disappointing experiment.