ST Bycroft

Thomas was slowly walking back to his lot after visiting the docks. His belly hung low full of tasty fish. He lumbered across the sidewalk with an air of satisfaction. He was heading for a crate in the back of the lot where he could lay on top in the warm sun.

Paul was heading to the bus stop to catch the next shuttle to get to work. A cat slowly walked across the sidewalk in front of him heading for the vacant lot next to his apartment building. He shook his head and thought 'Fat Cat'. 'Maybe, that's where the term came from, waddling along, over stuffed with an air of privilege as the rest of us raced around just to get by'.

Paul continued on to the bus stop. He was a single, mid thirties, white skin, brown hair, average height, a bit above average weight guy. So an average guy.

He arrived at the bus stop and waited. The regulars were there, waiting too. He had a short ride to the bus depot and then a longer one to the office out in the suburbs. He didn't own a car. He had a license and could drive, if needed, but living in the city a car was just trouble.

He liked it better when he worked in the corporate office down town. There was much more activity in the city. When he left work there was always something right there. Now, after being transferred to the satellite office in the suburbs, he found that after the commute to and from the office and working all the extra hours now 'expected' by management, he was to zombied out to do anything during the week. So life had become a routine of go to work, work all day, come home, zone out for a bit, sleep. Then repete the whole thing over again the next day.

Paul got onto the bus and took a seat, it wasn't crowded. He looked out the window as the bus pulled out. There was the general busy activity of the city. He looked up and across from him, above the window was an ad. It showed a cartoon dog on it's hind legs at the feet of a cartoon woman in a cartoon kitchen and it read:

I'm a dog
I'm a dog
I'm a dog, yes ma'am
I'll eat your scraps,
but I'd rather have ham.

Ham bone dog biscuits, 'Tastes like real ham'
Brought to you by Premiero the premiere dog food supply company

'Tastes' like real ham he thought. But it wasn't real ham. He wondered for a moment what it was really made from. The idea made him shudder a bit and he shook his head slightly, better not to know he told himself.

The bus was pulling away from the last stop before the depot. Paul looked out the side window and saw a woman running after the bus. She obviously missed the bus at the last stop. He recognized her. She was a regular on the route. She was cute too. Paul yelled up to the driver 'Hey you missed a fair'. The driver looked with annoyance in the big mirror above his head, but he also pulled over and stopped the bus.

The woman got onto the bus, she said 'thanks' to the driver and paid her token. As she went to take her seat she looked back at the other passengers with a big intake and exhale of breath and a look of 'whew I made it.'

She sat down a couple rows up and across from Paul. He half stared at her. She was a regular on the bus but he also felt that he had seen or knew her from somewhere else, too. He just could not place her.

When they got to the depot he watched the girl get onto the downtown shuttle while he waited to catch his bus to the satellite office.

Copyright (c)  ST Bycroft  2015