76

I listen in on his conversation. It’s not eavesdropping when they are on speaker phone. Apparently, the dairy supply is at an all-time low, and someone named Davie is, yet again, a complete shit head. I roll my eyes at Davie. And then there is Linda.

I picture her as the impossible sexy neighbour. I wonder if she is a smoker with low-slung sweatpants or very perfectly pressed white shirts. She seems to be my kind of trouble. Obviously, there was some sort of falling out with Linda. Within minutes, I find myself siding with her. He mutters some gruff half-words into the speaker, the universal signal of 'I’m still here‘.

We’re all here, actually.

The community of bus 76, united in suspense, is deeply invested in the unfolding of this drama. It can’t be Linda‘s fault if the brother secretly fancies her. Even when taking his testi-cancer into account. It wouldn’t work. She is just out of his league. I signal as much with my eyes to the elderly lady sitting across. She is clearly with me on this. We all fancy Linda at this point. Just as the story takes a sudden turn, he gets up. I consider following him. We all do. The door closes behind him, and that’s it. We’ll never know. What the hell, Linda, Davie, the brother and all the other people we come to care about. We will now have to miss you forever.