Pick A Better Place To Lie

I am riding the bus. This particular route is one I regularly take, and it’s usually driven by this one driver who always seems like a grumpy jerk. After the events of this story, my perception of him changed instantly.

One evening, I am once again taking my usual route, with the very same driver, of course. At some point, he pulls over, but not at a typical bus stop. He pulls over next to a park bench where buses don’t stop, turns off the ignition, opens the door, and exits the bus. Oh, what a jerk, right?

Well, not quite. I look out the window, and I see what appears to be a pregnant woman smoking a cigarette! I then see the bus driver march furiously toward this woman. I also see him pulling her cigarette out of her mouth and just straight-up yelling at her for the next five or so minutes.

Driver: “What the h*** do you think you’re doing?! You said you’d quit!”

And so on.

He then snatches her purse, pulls out a pack of cigarettes, and walks back onto the bus.

Driver: “I’m so sorry for the inconvenience, everyone. If you’ll bear with me for a moment, I need to call my supervisor, and then we’ll be back on the road.”

I’d never heard him apologize for anything before.

Much later, I learned that this woman was actually his ex-girlfriend, and he was the father of their then-unborn child. Despite her smoking habits, she managed to give birth to a healthy baby girl. I don’t hate this guy anymore. He’s my hero now, even though he’s still difficult to get along with.