The Bus

Lindy McAbel made her way to the bus stop slowly, fighting the frigid January winds which whistled loudly and numbed her face with each step. She tucked her head in to her jacket, shielding herself from the chilly blows as she sat down on the bench to wait, hoping that the public transport would arrive quickly and spare her from this misery. She sat for about five minutes, but it felt more like twenty-five, and since moving her hands to glance at her watch would have rendered her head vulnerable, Lindy would never know for sure.

She heaved a sigh of relief as the large vehicle rolled to a stop in front of her. It was the same model and make as the other public transport buses, the same distinctive shade that was somewhere between periwinkle and gray, and in her haste to escape the cold Lindy did not notice that the bus did not bear the standard seal of the Boston Public Transport Authority. In fact, the bus was completely unmarked, and on any other day Lindy would have found this quite disconcerting. But today, she was far too preoccupied with the weather.

"Thank you," she whispered hurridly to the bus driver as she made her way to the back of the big blue bus.
"Nghh." He grunted noncomittally in response. Not much of a talker, this one, Lindy thought to herself as she plopped herself down on one of the many vacant seats. She didn't question the fact that she was the vehicle's only passenger; she knew that four o'clock in the morning was not exactly a peak time for traveling.