Melanie stared out the window at the landscape as it drifted by. Sunglasses hid the bruise around her right eye, another mark from her drunken husband. The inside of the Greyhound was cold despite the scorching Midwestern heat outside, and she wrapped her arms around her children to keep them warm while they slept.
Five year old Jason leaned into her side by the window, and two year old Sierra straddled her lap, resting her little head on her chest. Melanie caressed her children’s heads as they softly snored. They’ll be safe, now. She closed her eyes as a shaky breath escaped her lungs.
“They look so peaceful,” a quiet voice said from across the aisle.
Melanie looked over to find a little old lady smiling back at her. Her snowy white hair lay atop her head in a short perm, making Melanie think of a Q-tip. The woman’s pale blue eyes twinkled as she smiled warmly back at Melanie.
“They’ve had a long ride, already,” Melanie said softly. “We still have a ways to go. They’re going to become restless before it’s over.”
“Visiting family, my dear?” the old lady asked.
Melanie licked her lips. “It’s going to be an extended visit, I’m afraid. Hate to burden them, but we couldn’t stay where we were.”
The old lady nodded knowingly. She respected Melanie’s privacy and didn’t pry. Melanie appreciated that. She didn’t feel comfortable dumping her troubles onto strangers. It wasn’t their place to fix her problems. “What about you? Are you visiting family, or moving to something new, too?”
The old lady chuckled. “Oh no. I just get bored sitting around in an empty house and need to get out sometimes. After my Joseph passed away, I was left with a small fortune and no one to share it with. We had no children, and I have no pets to worry about, so I travel. Get to meet some interesting folks that way, you know.”
Melanie smiled and agreed.
The bus pulled into a rest stop with a service station. The driver announced that they would leave in fifteen minutes. Melanie roused her children. “Come on. Let’s stretch our legs and get some snacks.”
“That sounds like a good idea,” the old lady said, rising to follow them off the bus.
“Who’s that?” Jason whispered shyly.
“Um,” Melanie stammered. She never asked the woman her name.
“Just call me Mimi,” the lady answered, patting the boy’s head.
Melanie took her children into the service station followed by Mimi. After taking them to the restroom, she had them pick out some snacks and drinks.
“That’ll be $23.50,” the cashier said after ringing everything up.
Melanie swiped her card.
“Sorry, ma’am, but your card was declined,” the cashier informed her.
“What? That can’t be right.” I know the money was there when we left. She tried the card again.
“Sorry, ma’am.” The cashier gave her a sympathetic frown as she started gathering the items on the counter.
“Add my coffee and sandwich to her stuff and use my card,” Mimi said, placing her food beside Melanie’s items.
“Oh, I can’t,” Melanie started.
“Nonsense,” Mimi huffed. “I refuse to let you and your little ones go hungry just because your card won’t go through.” She gave Melanie a stern look when she tried arguing again.
Melanie sighed and smiled. “Thank you. I don’t know how I’ll be able to repay you though.”
Mimi chuckled. “Let it be a gift, dear. Like I told you, I have no family. Let me spoil your youngsters.”
Though uncomfortable, Melanie reluctantly agreed. “Thank you, again.”
Back on the bus, Melanie and Mimi chatted while Jason and Sierra looked at some picture books from their carry-on bag. After a while, Melanie and the children drifted off. She was vaguely aware of movement around her. She figured it was other passengers making their way to the cramped restroom in the rear of the bus, and didn’t pay them any mind. An hour later, she woke to the driver’s announcement for their next stop.
“That’s us, guys,” she said.
Fifteen minutes later, the bus pulled into the station in the small town where Melanie grew up. She spotted her mother’s van parked in the parking lot. Her mother and older brother waved when they saw her.
After Melanie grabbed the carry-on bag and propped Sierra on her hip, she instructed Jason to follow close behind her.
“Here’s a present for you and your mama,” Mimi whispered, handing the boy an envelope. She lifted her finger to her lips and winked. Jason smiled and hurried after his mother.
Melanie and the children waved to Mimi as the bus pulled out of the station. “Mama, Mimi gave us a present,” Jason said happily, showing her the envelope.
Frowning, Melanie took the envelope from her son. She passed her bags off to her brother and Sierra to her mother. Opening the envelope, she gasped. She removed a stack of cash from inside; twenties, tens, fives, and ones stared back at her, totaling over $300. Tears filled her eyes as she removed a note and read.
Life can be cold and cruel making it hard to carry on. Times can be hard, and tears will flow, but the world is filled with good hearted people. While you and your little ones slept, I shared your story with the other passengers. I just mentioned that you were on your way to start a new life with your little family and that you had a stroke of bad luck along the way. Before I knew it, I was collecting a small donation. Take this money and spoil those babies for me.
Mimi
Melanie pressed the note to her chest and closed her eyes. She whispered a prayer of thanks and stowed the money into her purse. On the ride to her parent’s house, she told her mother and brother about the kind old lady on the bus.
“Well, that was nice of her,” her mother said after Melanie told them about the money. “It’s good to know there are still kind people in the world.”
When they got to the house, Melanie helped her brother carry her luggage into the basement apartment their parents set up for her and the children. When they returned upstairs, her father had Jason and Sierra on his lap looking through a photo album.
“That’s Mimi,” Jason squealed, pointing to a faded photo.
Melanie leaned over her son’s shoulder. “It sure is.”
Her father stared up at her. “What?” he asked.
Melanie filled him in about the lady on the bus. “I didn’t know you and Mom knew her. I don’t remember ever meeting her.”
Melanie’s father looked down at the photo then back up at her. “That’s because she passed away before you were born.”
A chill ran down Melanie’s back. “But, that’s the same lady we saw on the bus,” she insisted.
“I don’t see how,” her father said. “That’s my great-aunt Minnie. She was my mother’s aunt. She died a year before you were born, just after great-uncle Joseph passed, six months before.”
Melanie’s face paled. “Did they have any children?”
Her father shook his head. “No, they weren’t able to have any. Broke their hearts, but they enjoyed spoiling their nieces and nephews.”
Melanie stared at the woman in the photo. Warmth filled her chest and she smiled. “She sure does.”
Comments