T H E T U S C A R O R A R E V I E W 2 0 2 3 2 7 polo shirt. “Yolanda” in chipped rhinestones on the back of her phone case. A wispy cursive “Y” tattooed in faded red ink on the inside of her wrist. She’s old, beige, and sagging everywhere, but she winks at me when she sees me and I love her for it. 10:08 We pass by the senior center without stopping. Some days we’ll pick up a passenger from there, but it’s been drizzly today and old people don’t usually like to stand out in the rain. 10:10 Roy Rogers: A group of seven guys I’ve never seen before gets on. They’re different ages, sizes, and colors, and all are wearing work clothes: tan Carhartt coveralls dirty at the cuffs, quilted jackets, steel-toed boots with frayed laces. I can’t help but notice the hands of the man who sits across from me; they’re yellowish purple and calloused everywhere. I can feel his gaze on me and I don’t dare look up. I know this man, though I’ve never met him before. Both his eyes and mine stare at my hands—pale and fidgeting, clasped between my knees— until Vinny, the driver, calls out the next stop. 10:22 Northside Shopping Center: Yolanda blows a kiss goodbye to everyone on the bus and climbs down the steps in her pink fuzzy slippers. Her metal cart rattles behind her on the pavement, its wheels bouncing unevenly. It’s just me, Vinny, and the seven men in overalls now. I feel small, and nauseatingly feminine. Just as the doors are about to close, a woman with coily blonde hair runs up and gets on. She has a sling wrapped snugly around her torso, and the bean-shaped outline of an infant is barely visible. The men are watching her now, and I move closer to the door. 10:30 I see my school as a speck at the end of the road. This is my stop. It’s a 12-minute walk from here to my classroom, so I’ll be on time today. A girl on a bike flies past me toward the buildings ahead, and I’m envious but only for a second. Author Information: I grew up in Frederick City and have attended Frederick Community College since 2021. I plan to major in Political Science, and aspire to one day write a novel.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQxMTc1