Child Of A Bus Driver

Chapter One - Another Day

The sound of an alarm started to ring and I awoke with a hangover, I checked the time and it was 6:00 am and then the door swung open " get up Katie! And go to school, you lazy little sod" the carer said and left. I rolled my eyes and made my way to the shower, where the refreshing water hit me, it felt marvelous.  Dried and dressed I stood in front of the dusty, old  mirror looking at myself, my eyes were bloodshot and sore from the previous night I grabbed my bag and started walking to the bus stop.

Arriving at the bus stop a little earlier then usual I had time to admire the view that the countryside has to offer and it was a marvelous site to see. The sun was coming up over the frost covered fields, the sky was turning blue and the cold didn't seem so harsh. I looked to my right and saw a old London bus, colored in green the doors pulled open " morning darling" Jack , the conductor said " morning" I said in reply and went to sit down " hang on a minute" he said pulling me back " what happened to you?" " oh Jack, really?" " yes, come on what happened?" " I went to a party and got slightly drunk"  he said nothing but his actions spoke instead and he pointed out a seat, I sat down with my head against the window he came and sat down next to me " Katie, this isn't you. What's been happened in that mind of yours?" " well...." I replied " I've been thinking a lot of my dad" " you miss him don't you?" " very, but I don't know why I've been left like this" " do you have a photo?" I pulled  both pictures from my bag and handed them to him, Jack studied it closely " what's the matter? Do you know him?" I said " no, never mind" he stood up and walked to the front of the bus " Jack" I said but he still had his back to me " Jack come on, my whole life as been a mystery, I've known you for ages,I have a right to know, this man is my father,  please, tell me" I begged. There was a pause, he turned round and said " his name is Stanley Butler, I used to go to school with him. We were mates, we did everything together but one day he came round my house, he had been crying told me he'd done something but he wouldn't tell me, after about three years he messaged me, saying he wanted to get away so he found a job as a entertainer on a cruise ship. I haven't heard from him since". As I looked in to jacks eyes I saw he had a tear coming down his cheek, I grabbed my sleeve and whipped it and said " thank you, Jackie darling" he smiled and stood up. The bell rang three times to signal that we were at the school and I stood up but before I walked out the door jack grabbed me " Katie, please don't start a mystery case about your dad" he begged " no I won't" i said quietly " have a good day" I smiled and walked off the bus and in to school.

One lesson to the next felt like hell and the worst lesson was getting closer I knew jack said not to start a mystery case about my dad but I just couldn't help thinking, thoughts were going round my mind until I pulled both pictures from my bag and stared hard in to it " why would a man who had everything want to leave?" I thought to myself, while the clogs were going round in my mind the teacher had seen the pictures and had come over,  " Katie, are you paying attention to this lesson?" " um..... " I didn't know what to say " what's that in your hand?" " well, as it so happens it must be photos " I said, the look on her face wasn't pretty and stormed over to me and whipped the photos from my hand " this isn't RE" " nothing is" I said " ow, you are like you're father" "what's that supposed to mean?!" I demanded, standing up " you're farther is part of a TV show called On The Buses, and I can see where you get that attitude from" I paused...... " but miss, I don't know my farther, I've not seen him since the age of three, all I know is that he had done something bad and went to work as a entertainer on a cruise ship" " who told you this?" She questioned " jack, my bus conductor I tell him everything" I answered " jack is the person who works with you're farther in the tv show, he's the conductor". You had me at my father and lost me at jack. All the years traveling on the number 11 bus and the cheeky git couldn't tell me about that. That was me done.

Games was upon me, before I knew I was running round a field doing two laps and my thoughts were going round in my mind, pushing me to make me run, run from the hell I was living in, running from reality but then I heard a loud thud and shortly after realized it was me. Reality told me that i had fallen to the floor but actually i had fallen through a black hole. My journey took me through my childhood, even going back to a young age. I saw memories of me and my dad sharing his favorite dish, pizza he always used to let me have the last bit, when I was not well he'd always make sure that the hot water bottle was never cold, carrying me to bed when I fall asleep on the sofa, staying up late reading me stories to get me to sleep, he used to be there when I fainted making sure that when I came round I had a familiar face and if I'm honest it comforted me, a lot and he'd always give me a kiss, even when he wasn't well, he believed that a kiss would solve everything. How I miss that. This made me realize how much I miss him.

As the bus pulled up, the doors soon opened and waiting in front of them was Jack, who walked over to me and asked " your face, its all covered in red and white blotches and how's your head?" I said nothing and got on the bus, jack followed and sat down next to me he was confused as to what was going on " you know about my fall?" I said looking deeply in to his eyes " yes, the teacher phoned me up and told me " ok, so you know about my fall, what else do you know then?" " what's that supposed to mean ?" " i don't know, like you never said you worked or working with my dad" jack looked a little puzzled so I filled him in " the teacher caught me looking at my photos in class and she said that he worked as an actor for a sitcom called On The Buses and you worked with him" " Katie I told you not to start a bloody case on you're dad" " jack, I have I right to known!  This man is my father, you just don't understand that" the bell had sounded and I was to get off " Katie" jack said following me of the bus and down the street " what!" " Katie I do work with him and he knows you go on a bus to school but he doesn't know which one, everyday when I go to the studio he asks about his little girl, he told me to keep a eye on you and to look after you, that's why I'm on this route. So I can keep an eye on Stans little girl" I looked him up and down " Katie he has photos of you like you have photos of him, he just wants his little girl" " I don't want him" I shouted " that's not very nice, he loves you" " if he loved me he wouldn't leave me in a children's home, I've grown up without him for so long, I think I can manage the rest" " Katie" " go away jack!" I said and walked of.

The rain started just as I settled down for the long walked home, my mind all over the place. My heart wanted my dad, my head didn't. After all these years he has the courage to say he wants me. I'm perfectly capable of managing by myself. As I arrived at the home, I made my way to my bedroom and shut the door and fell on the hard bed, face down and decided not to breathe for a while but the phone rang, it was my friend she was having a party and wanted me to come. Its nice to be wanted so I obliged and got ready. Standing ready in front of the mirror made me realize that I've grown in to a female version of my dad and uncertain of tomorrow I went to the party and decided to get rid of my problems the way I knew how. Drunk.