Valentine surprise

He was born Geranld R. Ford. He was not named after the Thirty Eighth president. He was ten years old when Richard Nixon resigned and Ford became the only president ever not elected. His namesake had affected him. Ford, despite being a star athlete in college, had a few well publicized “clutz” moments, and became the butt of many a comedian’s joke, most notably Chevy Chase on Saturday Night Live. Back in Kansas City, the jokes trickled down to the young boy, who by no fault of his own, shared the same name. Gerald would be made fun of and bullied, and this provided a relatively low level of self-esteem and confidence.

Today, though, the forty four year old had it all figured out. He finally had a woman in his life. Nancy Davis worked part time at the animal shelter. She was as quiet and reserved as Gerald, and he often wondered if she got picked on in school too. Someday he would build up the courage to ask her, but not today. Today was Valentine’s day and everything would be perfect. He had arranged to leave his job at Costco early. He had ran across the street to Linwood Foods, and purchased a giant, white stuffed Teddy Bear. And he had ran down to Troost to make sure he got on the number Twenty Five bus just in time.

Tonight they would dine at the Oriental Feast Chinese Buffet, and he would ask her if she wanted to go steady, but he had to be to her house before she left for work, to make sure she knew he would pick her up from work at seven o’clock. . The Bus pulls up to the Linwood St. bus stop. The number 25 emblazoned on the front. White paint in front, and grey paint in back are set apart by geometrically stunning angles of blue and green lower in front than in back giving the bus a sense of forward movement even when standing still. Stepping into the bus, the driver sits in a throne, straddling the steering wheel, almost three feet in diameter, that is situated parallel to the ground. Behind him, a plexiglass pane forms a wall from the ceiling to the front-left wheel well.

To the driver’s right, is the fare station, a free standing aluminum and plastic tower almost four feet high. On top of it are a place to swipe passes and transfers, a slot for paper money, one for coins, and a slot that distributes change cards and transfers automaticallyGerald swipes his bus pass like a credit card, while the giant white bear is secured by a head lock with his off hand. Gerald turns to his left and begins looking for a seat.

The first six seats on the bus, three on each side, face sideways from the forward motion of the bus. A sign indicates that these seats are reserved for handicapped riders. Behind these seats are 8 rows or four forward facing seats, two on either row of the center aisle. The seats have a grey plastic backing, with plastic hand-holds above each back rest. The fronts are covered by a grey cloth cushion with black, red, green and orange speckles.

Large tinted windows about 4 feet square run the entire length of either side of the bus. Above the windows is a row of florescent lightbulbs with a clear plastic cover. Above that, advertisement placards for the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority, other civic organizations, and route maps form a crown molding transitioning the vertical plane of the outside wall to the horizontal plane of the ceiling. On either side of the center aisle, brushed aluminum tubing runs parallel to the ceiling an arms length above the shoulder, allowing a hand hold for taller passengers who may have to stand. For shorter riders, canvas straps hang down from the aluminum tube.

Two thirds of the way to the back, on the left hand side, is an alcove set apart by a wall of both painted and transparent plexiglass. Here, a pair of double doors provide an extra exit point for riders. Beyond the rear door a set of 2 steps leads up to the rear area, three more rows of forward facing seats, and where the rear wheel wells cut into the interior, two more sets of three sideways seats. Along the back wall of the bus is a bench seat where up to five riders can sit.

Each row of two seats is half full. No one is sitting next to each other, but Gerald is lucky, he finds two free seats next to each other and sits down next to his big, white pal. There are many interesting characters on the bus. One man is so large he takes up two seats. . His jacket is adorned with a hunting camouflage pattern and his shoulder bag has a matching pattern, is he going hunting, in Kansas City? The man in front of him wears a bus drivers uniform. Gerald wonders if bus drivers get to ride the bus for free. Next to the giant man a strange man with a scraggly beard and a floppy Cubs had scribbles into a notebook.

An aging man with a bald head looks through the window. He turns his head at the neck and peeks across the bus through the opposite window. A man in a tan jacket hollers into his Cricket phone. “They better not give me none”

A tall middle-aged man with an afro fumbles with a Valentine’s package. A plush green bear sits in between the top of a clear plastic bag and some candy goodies inside a pink heart shaped box at the bottom. He reaches his hand into the back and struggles to get past the bear. The situation is complicated by the unlit Kool dangling in his hand. He drops the bear. After leaning down to pick it up, he opens the cardboard box and reaches the sweet treat inside. The candy does not bring a smile to his face. He stares out the window as he chews the candy with great, deliberate mastications.

Gerald’s stop is coming up. Just across Volker, on the east side of the street, are the apartments where Nancy lives. Adrenaline starts to flow as he pulls the rope to ring the bell to tell the bus driver to stop at the next designated location. The bus pulls to a stop and Gerald grabs his bear in another head lock, and inadvertently bumps a few passengers in the head with it on his way out.

Standing in the shadow of the backside of the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Gerald looks to cross the street. 20 feet to his left, there is a crosswalk and a traffic signal, but Gerald is too exited. He is right across from Nancy’s door and he wants to get there now. He crosses halfway, but has to wait for northbound traffic. He stands on the double yellow line and waits. After this sedan. He crosses. Sprints. He bounds up the curb and up the small staircase to the front door.

He wants to surprise Nancy, so rather than buzz her, he enters the code. 5244. He’ll never forget it. It was the first time a woman had ever given him her digits. The door clicks open and he flings it out of his way, jumps up the stairs two at a time and reaches apartment 2b. He knocks. No answer. He hopes he hasn’t missed her. Knocks again, nothing. He turns the handle. The door is unlocked. Strange. The door creaks open and he enters.

The shades are pulled, the room is dark. He’s never been over during the day before, so he has no idea what she does over here. Sheepishly, he calls out her name. “Nancy?” “Nance?” He heads back into the hallway to her bedroom. Maybe she’s taking a nap. He opens her bedroom door, and his heart hits the floor. There’s Nancy all right, on top of his best friend, Bill Clinton.