Center of Center (14)

a serial novella-in-flash by Chris Wiewiora

BLUE

You’re new, this middle-aged guy says as he hops on at the intersection of Bloomington Road and University Boulevard. He wears a T-shirt of Jay with one strap of his backpack slung over his shoulder. The strap pulls the screenprinted bird down further into the tornado.

I’ve gotten no other riders along Bloomington from Parade Mall. From this stop, I’ll ride southward into C.U.’s campus. I’ll loop around the school buildings and then return to the Mall before setting up for an extra route.

This guy could be a father of a student or an alumnus or a C.U. arenaball fan with his Jay’s T-shirt, but he’s carrying a backpack. I say, Hello and the guy says he’s going to the Knowles Library to study for an engineering exam but says that he used to be a driver. He says, It’s not worth it. It’ll feel like it is, but you should always remember it’s not. It’s all about the customer, the passengers, the students.