A chance meeting
The rain was still coming down as Jake came and stood just in front of her in the shelter to wait for his bus. Often she would look at him and wonder what a young man like him was doing at a job like this. He would stare intently at the conveyor as everything came past and the way that he gently put the lenses in their cases showed that he cared about the work. She reasoned that any young person who was able to do this showed a fine character. It was not often that she would bestow such thoughts on anyone so young these days. The good old-fashioned gentleman was a thing of the past and there certainly were no ladies about. Instead hot-headed men prancing around with their pants almost around their ankles and girls who should not have even bothered to wear clothes strutted their stuff. It was sad to watch the decline in the younger generation and rather worrying thinking about where the world was headed with this as the future. But Jake? No he was different somehow. He had hardly ever spoken to anyone, but he was always polite and respectful toward his fellow work mates. She stood close enough to him to hear the gentle sounds coming from his headphones through the chatter of voices around them She smiled as the jazzy notes found her ears.
Soon a bus pulled up and whisked him away and she was left standing next to a boy who sported a green hair-do and piercings in more places that she could count. Quickly her thoughts on the disturbing future of her home returned as she was faced with this sight. Every time a car drove past it splashed little drops of cool water onto her stockings and shoes. She stared down at the patterns they made. It was amazing how differently she looked at the world as she got older. There were so many things that she overlooked when she was younger – too busy to take any notice of the world around her.
The rickety sounds of the approaching bus interrupted her thoughts and soon she was watching the scenery change around her on the way home. It was this part of the day that was the worst – going home to the empty house with no one to talk to and just the TV for company. They slowed to go around the corner and as they did so Maddy noticed the boy with the green hair was sitting a few seats ahead of her. She could hear his music from where she sat and it was a constant thump-thump-thump – it was a wonder how he was not deaf! The bus shuddered to a halt as she reached her stop and slowly made the trip up the front path to the green door that was home. The key clicked in the lock and the door swung open, showing the dark hallway that led inside the house. It was cold, the rain having cooled the house down during the day with no sunlight to warm its walls.
The light that came from the globe hanging in the ceiling was just as cold as it chased away the darkness. She walked through to the lounge and sat in the dark room without taking off her muddy shoes and soaked jumper. Instead she sat in the gloomy haze, handbag clutched on her lap and started at the blank TV screen. A lump started to form in her throat and a scream down in the pit of her stomach. She could not do it. Staying here tonight would send her insane. Once the scream was allowed to start it would be difficult to stop. She had to go back outside again. It was still drizzling as she walked back out onto the road. Her feet did the thinking taking her where they wanted to go. Her head was bent low to keep the water out of her eyes as it dribbled down from the hair that had come lose from her hat. It seemed like she had been walking for hours when all of a sudden she was jolted to a stop as she came crashing into another body. She looked up and stood face to face with Jake.
The light that came from the globe hanging in the ceiling was just as cold as it chased away the darkness. She walked through to the lounge and sat in the dark room without taking off her muddy shoes and soaked jumper. Instead she sat in the gloomy haze, handbag clutched on her lap and started at the blank TV screen. A lump started to form in her throat and a scream down in the pit of her stomach. She could not do it. Staying here tonight would send her insane. Once the scream was allowed to start it would be difficult to stop. She had to go back outside again. It was still drizzling as she walked back out onto the road. Her feet did the thinking taking her where they wanted to go. Her head was bent low to keep the water out of her eyes as it dribbled down from the hair that had come lose from her hat. It seemed like she had been walking for hours when all of a sudden she was jolted to a stop as she came crashing into another body. She looked up and stood face to face with Jake.
