She always liked big cities.
Always since she was a little kid.
To her, it was fascinating to see so many individuals, with countless different lives, goals, experiences, and troubles, existing in the same place simultaneously.
«Attention to all passengers, bus 27 is coming to the shelter», the mechanical voice resounded above her head, catching her attention.
She rose from the bench, adjusting the backpack at her shoulder and dusting off her clothes. Her phone started ringing when the bus arrived: "Mom" flashed on the screen.
Accepting the call, she stepped aside, watching if the bus was nowhere near.
«Hi, Mom, what's up? »
Her mom's cheerful voice greeted her; in the background, the girl could faint hearing the muttering of her father.
«Hi, honey, where are you? Already in class? »
«Nope. I'm waiting for the bus; today is late, but I will get to class in time if I run»
«Oh, good, then I won't take long. I just want to let you know that the comic shop called, saying that the last volume of that manga you booked, One Price? One Pace? I don't remember the name, hon, has arrived, and the shop assistant is waiting for you»
«Thanks, Mom. I'll go get it. Don't wait for me for lunch; I'll go with my friends»
«Okay, sweetheart, be careful on your way»
«Bye, Mom, love you»
Ending the conversation with an annoyed sigh, she instantly felt giddy that her favorite manga's new limited edition had finally arrived. Even if she already knows what happens in the chapters printed inside the tankobon.
Sometimes, she feels guilty about buying a comic book that she already knows the plot. However, she blames her enormous curiosity, which doesn't allow her to wait a month to print the new issue.
After all, she thought, it's not my fault if Oda ends every chapter with a cliffhanger. I mean, it's like asking the fans to read every new weekly chapter online; the soft "bing" of the ticket validator machine greeted her as she entered the bus.
Knowing that her stop was still many minutes away, she pulled out her organizer from the backpack. Pen in her hand and her phone in her bag, she started writing about her following classes.
So, Monday, I have "International Politics" at 9 am, after that ", Development and Growth in East Asia" till 11 am and "Geopolitics" from 12 to 2 pm.
«That means that I have to eat lunch at the school canteen», she muttered under her breath, clenching the pen. «Who was that crazy person that made me enroll at the university? »
And then, Tuesday, I've got "French" in the afternoon. If I run, I can be home for dinner.
The pen was quick in its job, writing all her appointment inside the agenda while her brain was trying to create an opening for an aperitif with her friends in the busy week.
At that moment, she continued to do her work, not giving attention to the world outside. The noise of the people, of the traffic away from her, was covered by the music in her ears, provided by the phone. The only things she could think of were her following classes, and for a moment, she even forgot that she was on public transport and not in her room.
Indeed, that was why she didn't realize what had happened until the last minute. Why didn't she see the huge truck that was arriving against her window seats, countersense to the rules of the roads, until a deafening HOOONK and the scarred face of the poor truck driver were only a few centimeters away from her.
YOU ARE READING
Go down the rabbit hole and out the other side
ActionLooking at things in retrospect, she wouldn't have traded her life for anything in the world. It wasn't an adventurous one, but it was hers. She had a loving family, a few trusting friends, an admittedly stress-inducing degree-in-making and an expen...
