Page

Page pulls out her tap card and gets on the 115 westbound bus in Inglewood. The man in front of her is autistic. He is a lot like her cousin Nathan who died last year trying to cross the street on Crenshaw and Coliseum headed to Denny's, his favorite restaurant. The man on the bus is holding up the seating process because there are teenagers sitting in front seats that are reserved for the elderly and handicapped. He points to one of the boys.

"You get up and go back there." His speech is kind of slurred. He is not drunk. He sounds like Nathan. Then points to an older black woman behind Page. "And you sit here." He points to the seat the teenager sat in. The woman and the teenager move slowly. Both surprised by the man's orders. Both surprised the teenager got up without a fuss.

"Thank you." The woman says as she takes her seat.

"No problem at all."

Page finds a seat in the middle of the bus and pulls a book out of her bag. THIER EYES WERE WATCHING GOD by Zora Neale Hurston. After a few blocks she finds herself staring out of the window. Lost in the circle of her thoughts. As the bus approaches Van Ness she pushes the button alerting the driver that she wants to get off. She gets up slowly. Takes one unsure step after the next to the door. The bus leaves and she is still standing there. She hands a dollar to a man sitting at the stop who asks her for change.

"God bless you." He takes the dollar. They both notice how dirty his hand is.

"God bless you too." Page says as she walks away. Today is the day. She repeats to herself. Today is the day.