Just a Stranger on the Bus

The driver opened the door and stared out, but no one got on. He looked annoyed as he left his seat and stepped out of the bus, only to return a few seconds later, carrying a screaming, flailing, little red-haired boy, grasping him by the sides, arms extended. He put the boy gently into the first open seat, which was in the second row next to a woman who looked like someone had just handed her a live grenade. The screaming intensified when a moment later the boy’s mother appeared, carrying a second distraught, slightly smaller red-haired boy. She looked to weigh all of 100 pounds and had what seemed to be everything the family owned in two backpacks slung over her shoulders.