Dawnesha

"ALL ABOARD! Bus is moving!" she hollers each time she closes the bus doors and steps on the gas. Dawnesha offers this warning each and every stop. It makes her feel she's providing extra kindness to her passengers, which it is. She also offers a greeting to each person as they board the bus. You can't help by smile and say hello back. It isn't until you look up that you realize she's not smiling at you when she utters it. She's got a slightly hard look on her face, but the gesture is there.

As she reaches the end of her shift, she's tired and realizes she's got to pick up dinner for her kids on the walk back to her apartment. She'd cook, she loves to cook, but she's not had time to shop all week since Deshawn, her 10 year old, and Lashawnda, her 6 year old have been sick with the autumn cold that's going around. 

She picks up McDonald's on the way. She hate's that she's feeding herself and her kids this shit another night this week, but it is on the way. It's easy.

The hike up to the third floor seems harder today than it has all week. As her short, thick legs take her up each exhausting step in the cold stairwell, she thinks to herself,"One more day of this. One more day."

She enters the home to hear the hardwood floors creak and the sound of Lashawnda running towards her.

"MOMMYYYYYY!" she screeches, "YOU'RE HOME!"

Dawnesha's exhausted body was slammed into and two small arms wrapped around her. "Hi baby girl," she said with a smile, "I see you feelin' better now. Where's your brother?"

"He's in playing XBOX."

She took off her coat and headed into the living room, McDonald's bag in hand. Pushing Deshawn's feet off the couch, she sat down. "You feelin' better too?" she asked.

"Yeah," he responded with preteen aloofness.

"Good. Pause your game and eat with us," she said unwrapping a cheese burger and setting it in front of him. "LASHAWNDA! GET IN HERE AND EAT!" she yelled.

As the 6 year old bounced in with the energy of, well, a 6 year old, they all ate their meal in silence.

What This Is About

Since moving to Chicago I take a lot of public transportation. Mornings, more often, I see the same people day in and day out. No one really speaks on the bus. If they do I try to ignore them anyway. So I am starting to make my own stories of these people - who they are, what they do, where they come from. This is a writing project solely for fun about the stories I am making up for these familiar faces I see regularly. I am going to share these interesting characters with you.