5 Minute Freewrite - Trolley

Everyday the same thing. Get a coffee from Millers Deli - Go next door to "Corner News". Get smokes and a paper. Walk a block to the trolley line. Enjoy a smoke'n some of my coffee on the way.

The cute blond who always wears too much perfume was already there. This time she smiled at me. It felt great. At 8:07 sharp the trolley stopped in front of us. I let the blonde go in ahead of me. Wanted to get a good view of her ass as she made her way up the steps. She must work out. Think she caught me staring. I'm not a creep. Don't you fucking judge me. Blondie sat next to Rob the construction worker. Guy smelled like sawdust and beer. A mans man.

Got a seat near the driver. One where your back is against the window. I squeezed in-between the wall separating the stairs and an Indian woman wearing a burka. The ride lasts 18 minutes. Which is just enough time to check out the sports section & obituaries. That last bit might seem weird but I've done it since i was a kid. Don't know why.

I'm just about finished with them. My stop is about 3 minutes away. I get to the last one. It's this old guy with a thick beard and beady eyes"Jim Sanders" - 60Father of 4 - Brother - husband - Grandfather of 10 - Natural causes.

I tucked the paper under my arm and stood - Nearly bumping heads with the man across from me. We locked eyes for half a second before he turned and quickly exited the trolley. I looked down at the seat where he was sitting just as the trolly picked up again. A wallet lay on the seat. The driver wasn't happy about it - but stopped and let me off. We had only made it 100 yards. But he was no where in sight.

I opened the wallet to see if there was a drivers license. With the intention of delivering it to the man or at least mail it back to him. Inside there was a library card for a Mr. Franklin Turner a grocery store rewards card. A debit card. Two elite level credit cards and and finally a drivers license. Same name as the library card. When I looked at the photo a chill shot through my entire body.

A heavy man. Round head. Thick beard and glasses. Behind the glasses were a pair of beady eyes. I dropped my briefcase and flung open the paper to the obituary section. I held the ID up next to the photo of Jim Sanders Those eyes........