Little excitements

She gets into the school bus at 6:40 am. The bag on her shoulders, though not big, reaches half her height. She walks slowly down the aisle and chooses the second seat on the left. Sometimes, she chooses the third seat on her left. She does not bother to remove the bag off her shoulders and rests her back against it. She looks out of the window as the bus passes through various places that look familiar. Sleep hovers right behind her eyelids but she holds it back by keeping her eyelids open. The bus stops at a few other stops and she looks at the children getting into the bus with disinterest. Neither she nor the new entrants bother to greet each other. They had only known each other for a few days. Besides it was too early in the morning to greet. As the bus approaches the final stop, she moves towards the aisle side of her seat, cranes her neck and looks through the windshield. She sees a white Honda City with a father and daughter standing beside it. Her face brightens up. Suddenly, the sleep that was hovering behind her eyelids vanishes. She, unable to contain her excitement, jumps in her seat and as the little girl gets into the bus starts chanting “Subbu, Subbu, Subbu,…”. The little girl walks up to the her smiling shyly. She is welcomed with a hug and a series of tickles. They laugh and chat for the remaining part of the journey.

In the evening, the two girls wait for the bus to commence its journey. They talk about the day’s activities as they wipe away the sweat from their forehead with their arms. As the bus starts moving, they become quiet and start observing the sights that pass them. Occasionally, they start a conversation but it does not prolong for long. When the bus approaches the second stop, the little girl who had got into the bus at 6:40 am cranes her head to look through the windshield. She sees her mother waiting for her at the stop with her baby sibling sleeping in the pram. She, unable to contain her excitements, jumps in her seat and starts chanting “Mama, mama, mama, …” As soon as the bus stops and the doors open, she runs through the aisle, down the steps and out of the door into her mama’s arms. Subbu looks at the scene with a smile on her lips. As the bus starts moving, she rests her head against the back of her seat and goes to sleep; a sleep so deep that her father has to carry her to the car when the bus reaches her stop.