"Mass Transit"

"Mass Transit" (Part One)

Mitch Hest is 21 years old now. Old enough to drink but he refuses to get caught up in vice. He is what they call Straight Edge. That (for him) means no drinking,drugging,smoking,sex. He lives in Buffalo,New York. He likes it there. He is a loner.
Sure there are people he talks to on occasion, but no real friends per se. He has no desire for what would complicate his life. Including a girlfriend. Oh yes he is definatly straight. And he's pretty sure it's 100%.
He lives alone. Well almost. He has a cat. His cat's name is George. Mitch talks to George and in Mitch's mind George talks back. They have a healthy relationship. Enough relationship for Mitch's liking.
Mitch rides the bus. He has a job that (luckily for him) is on a major bus line. The # 20 Elmwood. He is cook at a burger place at The Main Place Mall downtown Buffalo.
He likes his job and likes his co-workers well enough. He just doesn't have relationships with them. But that is ok. He enjoys solitude. Most of the time.
He does get lonesome from time to time but he deals with it the best he can. When Mitch isn't busy at work he spends his time reading and watching television. He watches a wide variety of shows. Everything from The Simpsons to Law and Order. But by far his favorite is the CSI shows.
Mitch once thought that he might go to school to become a crime scene investigator. But he is worried about the blood and guts. He used to watch ER but all that blood got to him. So Mitch realized that if he couldn't stand tv blood he couldn't manage the real thing.
Mitch has no known family that he's aware of. Not in Western New York anyway. Five years ago his parents were killed in terrible car accident. Seven people were killed in that accident. The accident was caused by a drunk driver. This is a very big part of why Mitch doesn't drink.
As for driving, sure he knows how but on his meager salary he can't afford a car. Besides parking in downtown Buffalo is as hard as Chineese algebra. A saying Mith's dad taught him.
Mitch was happy (overall) with his life. He had no reason to complain. That is until after work today. Things were going to change drasticly. And not for the better.
* * * * *

PART TWO:
Mitch Hears a Voice

Work was over for the day. It had been a good day. It was time to go home. The #20 would come soon. Mitch would go home and unwind in front of the television. That was when it happened. Mitch heard a voice. He looked around to see who was calling him. There were plenty of people around who could have called his name. But it seemed that no one did. "Must have been my imagination" Mitch thought to himself. Then he heard it again. A stong male voice. It had called his name. Then the voice said something else. "Don't get on this bus." Quietly Mitch asked why. No response. The bus was it's way to Mitch's stop. What to do. What to do. Mitch did want to go home. But Mitch had a strange feeling in his stomach. A strong feeling of butterflies. An uneasiness. Mitch decided to wait for the next bus. It felt "right". In a few moments Mitch would find out why.
* * * * *

Rick Young got on the #20 bus. It was a wonderful spring day. He was on his way home from a long day at the office. This is a test Rick thought to himself. But this was not just any old test. This was to prove if he was ready. Ready for glory. He sat listening to his ipod that was full of Slayer songs. He sat there calm as ever. A line from the song he was listening to said "No emotion,death is all I seek." That was Rick to a tee.
Those that knew him knew that he was absolutly heartless. And most of the people that knew him did not care too much for him. Most people thought of him as creepy.
Oh sure he looked the part of a business man and was an asset to his company but outside of being a great worker,outside of work he was (some thought) pure evil.
Rick knew this. No one understood him. But that was ok. He knew that after today a lot of people would be very interested in him. That would include the F.B.I.
The news would not be able to leave his story alone. It would be a worldwide phenomenon. This thought made Rick tingle with what "normal" people would call delight.
Well this was his stop. He had a stainless steel briefcase and as he got out of his seat he left it there. No one would notice. Rick stepped off the bus. As the bus pulled away to a safe distance Rick got out his cell phone and dialed a number. Then the bus exploded. Killing all 17 people on board.
* * * * *

Story ID:	3629
Written by:	Kenneth William Kopper (bio, contact, other stories)
Story type:	Fiction
Location:	Kenmore NY USA
Year:	2008