Perhaps it was fate... but more likely it was just coincidence.
Shirley looked up from her book upon hearing the playful roar of a toddler. She was about to shrug it off when she realized the toddler was the same one from the day before.
Now that she considered it however, she realized it was not so unusual. After all, it was the same bus and essentially the same time.
Shirley smiled as the little girl in the stroller roared again at her brother. The girl then closed her eyes and covered her face with a teddy bear. When she did, her brother snaked his hand behind it and poked her cheek. The little girl roared again and the game went on.
This game went on for a few more minutes with their father, busy on his phone, occasionally shushing them and Shirley reinserted herself into her book.
The bus continued to bounce along the road making its stops until it finally arrived at the small family's and they got up. Shirley gave the little girl a smile as they rolled past her and was about to dive back into her book when she noticed the girl had lost her grip on her teddy bear which fell to the ground in front of her.
In a debate that lasted less than a second Shirley grabbed the teddy and dashed off of the bus after the family despite the fact that she still had a few more stops to go on her own trip.
Ahead of her on the icy street Shirley could see the family, the little girl squirming and reaching back toward the bus. Her father was obviously confounded, unsure of what the issue was. He was rapidly speaking to her in another language and gestured back to the bus when he saw Shirley approaching with the teddy bear.
Swivelling the stroller around he pointed to Shirley and the little girls face lit up. Shirley smiled and crouched down, holding the teddy bear out in front of her. The little girl snatched it from her and smothered it in her arms.
The father smiled as well, and thanked her in English. He then spoke to his daughter, who looked up at Shirley, flashed her a smile, then closed her eyes.
Without thinking Shirley found her finger sneaking behind the teddy bear and poking the girl in her cheek as her brother watched, containing his giggles. Suddenly the little girl let out a big roar and Shirley and the family burst into laughter.
Shirley stood up, thanked the family, and said goodbye. Turning around she was surprised to find her bus idling at its stop still.
"Go, go!" the little boy shouted.
Shirley dashed for the bus and jumped back on at the front.
"Thank you so much for waiting for me!" she said to the smiling driver.
"It is nothing; I am ahead of schedule. I saw your beau geste," he replied, his French accent apparent.
"Beau geste?" Shirley asked, as the driver closed the door and began to work his was back into traffic.
"Yes, beautiful gesture," he replied,
"Ah, OK," Shirley nodded, "and thank you for yours."
Shirley found her seat, pulled out her book, and began to read. She found that she could not help but smile.
YOU ARE READING
365
Short StoryA bizarre collection of short stories inspired by a single word (the title of each chapter). Lengths can vary and most are dark, but some are humorous with a little romance, and slice-of-life sprinkled in (genre in title).
