We Are The Ones On The Bus
By Matthew Baker, first published in Electric Literature
Passengers remain on a bus that may never reach its destination.
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Plot Summary
The passengers on the bus have ridden it for years. There is a bathroom in the back, a waste receptacle in the front, and basic amenities for each passenger. They sleep in the seats. Everybody on the bus chose to get on the bus and stay on the bus. They each have a ticket with a lofty destination printed on it beneath the bus company logo. They have been driven through cities, villages, and towns of all shapes and sizes. They have seen numerous views and all flavors of people from their seats. The noises outside are unable to fully penetrate to the interior of the bus. The inside of the bus is usually quiet. Pit stops are the only time where the passengers step off the bus. Each pit stop is one hour, and it is jarring for the passengers to be on solid ground after a long period of constant motion. The passengers understand that they are different from "ordinary people." They long for a connection that will never exist, as long as they continue to ride the bus. Regardless of how strong that urge is, the passengers do not want to leave the bus, because the lure of their destinations are too powerful, despite the fact that they are uncertain if they will ever reach their destination. Their greatest fear is to be left behind.
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