No Space for a Stroller

A red cab stopped in the place where the bus should have been. The paint radiated in the hot light of morning. Its orange sign seemed as if it would have glowed, whether it was lit up or not. In this case, it was. “Available for hire,” it made its message known.

??????????? Not a minute later, the big red bus did come. It was not as beguiling as the bright taxi, but it promised a safe trip at a cheap fare. It stopped up traffic in the middle of the street, and the door opened without much ceremony. Her card beeped across the machine without an issue.

??????????? A couple stops later, the morning took a turn. Outside a convenience store, a young mother waited with her daughter in an umbrella stroller. The driver paused but did not stop. Through a closed accordion bus door, he yelled out to the pair of them his decision. “No space for a stroller,” was all he had to tell her.

??????????? She stared ahead of her at the mostly empty rows of seats, taken only by two sprawling men seated leisurely across from each other. The bus drove on as she stared out the window in silence.

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