I have passed her every day since January, she sits at the bus stop at the corner of Ruth and Michener. She wears a yellow coat and a greenish sort of scarf with a black hat. I always want to stop and see if she’s headed my way, maybe give her a ride so she doesn’t have to wait in the cold. I never do though.

You can’t just offer someone a ride in this day and age. They are bound to think that you are up to no good and I just don’t need that hassle. I know that sounds like an excuse not to help someone but I’ve been that girl on the bus stop and it’s kind of creepy when someone stops and offers you a ride. You know that they aren’t likely to be a serial killer or anything but you can’t quite shake that fear that they might be. You don’t want to be the stupid girl who got into a car with a stranger. Sure, it’s a bit different because we’re both women, but you never know, an awful lot of bad guys have turned out to be bad girls instead.

And that doesn’t even consider the risk to me, maybe she’s one of the bad girls and she’s just waiting her chance to take advantage of someone’s good nature. I don’t want to be that fool who picked up someone she didn’t even know and then ended up stranded in the middle of nowhere as the stranger drove off in her car. I know there are worse scenarios to paint, but let’s not even go there. I can’t even bear the thought of it.

I keep an eye our for her though, every day, as I go by. She always looks well. She’s been getting through her novel quickly. She always seems to have a snack. I probably don’t have to worry about her. She’s probably perfectly happy taking the bus. It’s not so bad, you know, the bus. You can just sit there and read while you get chauffeured to your destination. It beats driving a car – you can’t read and drive.

I wonder if she notices me, driving by every day. Does think of me as the woman in the blue Kia? Does she notice what I’m wearing, whether I have a snack? Is she wondering why I don’t stop and offer her a ride? Does it seem weird to her if I don’t drive by on a given day? Does it throw off her routine?

It’s on my mind, see, because this is two mornings in a row that she hasn’t been there. I didn’t think too much of it yesterday – everyone misses the occasional day at work or school – but two days in a row is pretty rare. I spent all day yesterday wondering about her, and I just caught myself thinking about her again as I made my tea during my break. I wonder if someone else decided to stop and pick her up? I probably don’t need to worry about her, right?