Baby

As he got on the bus, holding his mother’s hand, he was excited. They would be on the big bus till nightfall, he had been told. What fun, Mom and Dad with him for the whole day. It had not happened in a long time. He would not close his eyes for a single moment that day. Sleep could wait till he got to Grammy’s.

The inside of the bus was so nice. Big leather seats on which he could stand but not see who was behind him. The windows were the same color as Dad’s sunglasses and the floor was carpeted. There was a TV in front of every seat. Mom had told him there was a toilet in the bus too. As soon as Dad put the bag in the closet above their seat, he tugged at Dad’s shirt and whispered, “I think I need to pee.” His Dad smiled and said, “You just went before we got onto the bus. Hold on till we are on the road.” He was disappointed but hopeful. Soon he would ask again.

People were still getting on the bus. Mom was seated at the window, sometimes looking out and sometimes watching people walking down the center of the bus. He wanted to climb on to her lap to look out too, but he didn’t want to get off the seat - it was all his after all. It had a hand-rest on either side that was covered with a soft cloth and there were some switches and holes on one of them. He wondered what they were for. He softly elbowed his mother and pointed to them. She shook her head and said, “Don’t touch any of the buttons or the bus will not move.” Oh dear - he could stop the bus. He must be careful. He moved closer to his mother to keep a safe distance between the switches and himself.

Before the bus took off, Dad secured the seat belt around his waist. He felt safe and all grown up, no booster seat, just a seat like everyone else. When the bus started moving, he could not help the grin that came across his face. This was so much fun. It was so comfortable, cool, and cozy.

The next thing he knew, he was in Dad’s arms and they were getting off the bus. Huh? Why? He hadn’t touched the buttons. He wondered who had and what was going to happen next. He hugged his dad’s neck and whispered, “Who stopped the bus?”

“We are going to have lunch here. Then we will be back on the bus again,” said Dad.

Had he missed the bus ride? He had wanted to stay awake all day. He hid his face in Dad’s shoulder and could not stop the wail that came out of his throat.

Dad took him to the washroom inside the restaurant. He had wanted to pee in the toilet in the bus. He had missed everything. Dad washed his face and took him back to where Mom was waiting in line to pick up some food, like they did on drives to Uncle Bob’s. He stood there holding on to Mom’s hand and looked around him. There was another girl standing just ahead of him, holding on to her mom too. She looked happy. She had enjoyed the bus ride. He looked away. He was sure she could tell he had slept through it. He felt sad. The wail was filling his throat again.

He felt a tap on his shoulder, “Are you going to have a little sister too?” asked the girl.

He gulped the wail down and looked at her in surprise. How did she know? He just stared at her, trying to figure it out. She turned and walked away. “Oh no,” he thought to himself, “Now she thinks I don’t know anything.” He hid behind his mom and searched for a sight of Dad, all the time wondering if Mom had told the girl about his little sister. Of course, that is how she knew. While he was in the washroom, his mother had spoken to her mother.

They got back on the bus after the chicken nuggets, fries, and orange juice. This time he would not sleep. He would enjoy the bus ride. The shades were drawn across the windows and people, he could see across the aisle, were watching the little TVs in front of their seats. How come he could not hear any sound from all the TVs? His Mom covered him with a blanket and then went under one herself. It was her time to sleep now. Dad was playing with the squares on the TV screen. He watched as the pictures moved across the screen in front of Dad. He craned his neck to see where those wires in Dad’s ears were coming from. Not from the TV in front. Then he heard the moans. They kept getting louder. Soon they turned to screams. The lady must be so afraid. Dad took the headphones and seatbelt off and stood up to see who it was.

“Is there a doctor on the bus?” someone shouted.

Dad raised his hand and said, “I am a doctor,” and walked towards the back of the bus and could not be seen anymore. People were walking up and down the bus. Someone must have touched the switches because the bus stopped. Mom peeped out from under the blanket and hugged him. “Gary? Where is Gary? Where is Dad? Gary, where are you?” He could tell Mom was upset. She spoke in a rush when she was upset. Mom took off her seatbelt and stood up, trying to find Dad. Why was Mom so upset? He tugged at her blouse, but she did not respond. She was standing facing the back of the bus and speaking to someone he could not see.

“We need to get to a hospital real fast,” he heard Dad say. Lots of voices could be heard talking across the length of the bus. There was sound of crying children and so he let his wail out too. Immediately his mother sat down, took off his seat belt and picked him onto her lap. He hid his face in her bosom and cried. It kept all the other sounds out of his ears and felt so good. His mother rocked him gently as she hummed a soft tune off and on. He held on as tight as he could. Soon the bus started moving again. He stayed in Mom’s lap. Dad was not in his seat, and he cried out for him. “Dad is around. He will be back soon,” said Mom gently stroking his back.

The lady was screaming once more. That sound came through his own wails, and he stopped. The lady must be really scared he thought, looking up at his mother. The bus came to a standstill. Mom was straining her neck, trying to find out what was happening. She stopped a lady who was walking by their seats. “No time to get to the hospital says the good doctor. It is coming now,” said the lady.

“What was coming?” He was confused. The lady was moaning then screaming. People were taking blankets and water bottles to the back of the bus. Suddenly the lady stopped screaming and he heard a baby crying. People were clapping. There was a lot of cooing and laughing.

“Let’s get them to the nearest hospital,” that was Dad’s voice again.

Mom hugged him tight. She seemed soft again, like she did when she tucked him in every night. All must be well. Dad came back, holding the little girl from the lunch line in his arms and said, “This is Megan. She will be riding with you to the hospital. I will be back there with the new baby and mother.”

He looked at the girl as he leaned against his mother. She smiled but looked scared. Mom put her hand out and said, “Come sit next to me, Megan.” The girl climbed over to the seat in the center.

“I want my Mama,” said Megan. She sounded sad. Her eyes were wet, and she wiped them with the back of her hands. Her chin was trembling, and her lips were curling over as she tried to straighten them. Mom put her arms around Megan, who placed her face close to his. He knew how afraid she was. He could feel it. He tried to smile at her, but he was scared himself. He put his hand on her face and they stayed that way till the bus stopped again.

Megan got off the bus with them as did other children and their moms. They were taken to a nice room with tables and chairs and given juice and cookies. Megan and he held hands. He felt sad for her because her Mama and Dad were not with her. Mom seemed worried too. All the moms were talking about the new baby. He wondered how the baby got on the bus. Mom had told him that his baby sister would be coming from the hospital. She was not there yet so they would be waiting for a little while. How did Megan’s sister get on the bus? Maybe they had stopped at another hospital while he had been asleep before lunch?

Soon his dad and another man walked in. Megan ran to the man, who picked her up and hugged her. Must be Megan’s Dad. Megan hid her face in the man’s shoulder, and he knew her wail was in her throat, so he was not surprised when it came out. He hid his face in Mom’s skirt and waited for his dad to come pick him up too.

“Dad, will we pick our baby here?” he asked in a soft whisper.

“Not yet,” said Dad, “Our baby will come later.”

Soon they were back on the bus to Grammys. He was not sure how the baby got on the bus, but he was tired and wanted to see Grammy. He did not like this ride anymore and hoped no new baby had climbed into the bus from the hospital they had just left behind. He did not want Dad to have to go to the back of the bus again. He moved closer to Dad, leaned against him taking care not to touch the buttons, closed his eyes, and let sleep take over.