Desks and Letters

The Bus

Celia

I woke up the next morning with a plate of cold pan con tamate next to me. Its zingy scent filling the room. Papi must have left it here last night, not wanting to disturb me. I must have slept for 13 hours! The last few weeks have been a blur, full of moving boxes and goodbyes, this must be the first time I have slept properly since leaving home.

The clock reads 7:18, huh, maybe more than 13 hours...

I get up out of bed, stepping over the last few boxes littering the floor. I stare at my closet for several minutes, still blinking the sleep out of my eyes. I settle on a dark grey t-shirt with the word odd on it. I don't know why, but it is my favorite shirt. Luciana picked it out for me while we were at an outdoor concert festival. I remember her hand in mine, the slight scent of strawberry ice cream, and the summer breeze blowing across her face and smile. Her laugh.

"This fits you perfectly"

"I haven't tried it on."

"I mean it fits you."

I shrug the memory away, she's gone now, Luciana, whatever we were, something more than friends, is gone too. She made it clear later that summer by making out with Galvin Enriques at a beach party.

I slip on some jean shorts and a pair of shoes. I grab my soccer bag from underneath the bed and run downstairs. The morning sun bounces off of the walls, giving the house a warm glow. Ricardo is sitting on the couch, a hot cup of coffee steaming in his hands, he nods in gesture at me, not taking his eyes off of his newest book obsession: The Time Machine by H.G. Wells. Ricardo is a book addict, always looking for the next fix, while he loves sports and physical activities, he always makes time for a few chapters a day. Julian lays beside him, rapidly typing away on his computer, no doubt trying to finish up an email to his friends back home. Probably discussing how the robot is doing. He and his friends Mickey and Nico have been building one for months, slaving over it every spare minute. Julian always says he will become an engineer, like Papi.

Augusto suddenly appears in the bathroom doorway. His permanent frown lingering even though he looks happy to see me. Augusto is the oldest of us kids. At 26, he is still struggling to find what he really loves to do. Besides girls. He has been a construction worker, an international photographer, and a store manager. Now he's living off of our parents and going to school to be an EMT. He's always been the most driven, but chaotic of the family. While he is incredibly smart, he doesn't know where to put it all, so he moves from one job to another. Same thing with his girlfriends.

"Have a good day CeCe. Good luck at tryouts." He says.

I give him a hug, grab a banana and run out the door, the bus should be here any minute.

↡↟↡

As the bus eases me in and out of sleep, I think of the bus back in Barcelona. All its usual passengers. The cute college boy with dimples who always winked at me when I left. The old woman with her feline like glasses, tinted a hot pink. The bitter bus driver who didn't stop for anyone who was late, but always greeted me with a smile because I gave him oranges from our tree. The young mother with her three naughty children, and their sticky hands...

"Is it okay if I sit here?" a voice says, shifting me back to the present.

A girl about my age stands with her hand on the top of the seat. Her reddish hair in a lazy braid down her shoulders.

"No, go ahead." I motion with my hands. She thanks me and sits down, leaving a few inches between our legs. Her face is smooth with rounded cheeks but sharp cheekbones, her lips the color of maraschino cherries. Her eyes are gray blue, with flecks in them. Like the sky before a storm. When everything is on edge and the air hums with electricity.