I met him on a crowded bus. It was raining and my nose wrinkled at the wet-person smell that came from every side. The heat of so many bodies pressed together made me feel stupid to be wearing a coat, even though it was cold enough outside to instantly freeze this communal sweat in a horrible icy slick all along my back -
"Sorry," someone muttered when the bus shuddered to a halt, half-knocking several people over. I nodded and muttered acceptance, clutching my bag closer with one hand and with the other grabbing a seat-back. The boy sitting there turned around, even though I hadn't touched him, and stared at me with wide eyes.
"Did you feel that?" He asked. I shook my head and looked away, hoping that if I avoided any further eye contact he would forget about me and I could go back into the mindless state that allowed me to mentally survive the commute.
"Are you sure?" He insisted, reaching back to touch my hand. It was very warm; I jerked back instinctively, and he smiled at my reaction before continuing, almost to himself. "Yes, I thought so."
I carefully turned around so that I could hold onto a seat on the other side of the bus. I knew it was dangerous to move much while the bus was in motion - not to mention rude - but running into odd people was always a possibility when it came to public transport and I'd learned a long time ago that it was easier if you could ignore them. And besides, my hand still felt a little tingly and that in itself was enough to freak me out. This guy, however, refused to be ignored.
"I know you felt it," he hissed, standing and leaning over so that, even at such close quarters, nobody else would be able to hear him over the engine's roar. I shook my head and glared at him, hoping that he would take a hint even though I'd never been good at meaningful looks. He still stood, as if waiting for a response.
"Sit down," I muttered, "Or give someone your seat. You're being rude."
I looked around, expecting to have every set of eyes riveted on the two of us and every ear bent firmly upon our conversation. Nobody was paying any attention at all.
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2 comments:
I was fixing to comment how your entries weren't showing up on the main page. But you go ittttt.
Anyway, to the storyyyyy.
It feels like you've had experience in public transport? haha. Yeah.
Where did you get the inspiration for that anyway? It's pretty cool. The beginning of it was pretty nice.
Yes, I have had just a little experience in public transport. I spend 1-3 hours on it three days a week, and last year it was four days. So just a LITTLE experience. I hate it, the bus I take is always late and always full.
Inspiration for what? Setting it on a bus? I think I came up with it while waiting for one, but I don't remember.
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