Just Stop For A Little While: Chapter 2

VIOLET'S POV (cont).


My dad pointed to the iPod on the kitchen table when I entered the door that evening. “I dropped by the shop for you today, it’s all fixed now.”
I nodded as I picked the iPod and stuck the earbuds into my ears. “Thanks.” My finger turned it on and as I clicked my way through the numerous songs, I remembered that weird guy I had met on the bus.
What did he know about anything? He was just probably twisted and bitter because he simply didn’t have an mp3 player for himself. And with that, I easily pushed him from my conscience. For the rest of the day, I listened to my iPod, using up the entire battery.



“So where’s your iPod today?”
I never knew how he was always able to appear just like that, beside me. When I had gotten on the bus, I had been certain that he wasn’t anywhere near me. I had been certain that he hadn’t even caught the bus today. Yet, here he was, asking that same persistent and nagging question. “Do you ever observe anything else besides the absence of ny iPod every day?”
“Do you ever observe anything else besides what is pumped into your earphones permanently connected to the sides of your head?” He grinned, proud of twisting my words into his own parallelism.
It was an obnoxious grin that I was unable to shoot down with my frosty glare. “I can’t believe I’m getting into another inane conversation with you about this. Stop trying to convert me when I’m obviously not going to change just because some random stranger just popped into the same bus seat as me.”
His grin grew wider. “Then how about this- hi, my name is Steven. 851. 625. 5039. I like to take long walks on the beach, enjoy romantic candle light dinners, and roller skate in the park. Now that I’m not ‘some random stranger’ will you think of converting- just a bit?”
Despite my efforts, the sides of my mouth quirked upwards in the remnants of a smile. “Are you sure that isn’t some kind of pick up line from somewhere?”
He clapped loudly. “That’s right. You just almost smiled! If I say another better pick up line, will you give me a real smile?” He watched my face carefully. “Oh wait, now that I just said that, your smile went away. It never works when I do that. Come on, smile a bit. When you smile, my world brightens up.”
I scoffed as I turned away to look out the bus window. “Shut up.”
There was a pause. I had thought he had left, yet his voice floated around again. “When was the last time you really laughed?”
“What do you mean? I laugh all the time.”
“Think harder. When was the last time you truly laughed?”
“I’m not answering that question.”
He grinned cheekily. “Okay, then answer my first question. Where’s your iPod today?”
“Why do you keep on asking that question?”
“Don’t answer a question with a question.”
I turned away again. “It doesn’t matter anyway because I’m not answering your question.”
There was another pause as he thought of what to say. “I ask the same question every day because it makes me sad to see another person aimlessly hooked up to a machine instead of enjoying what’s around her or enjoying the company of her friends around her, the friends she had made before she got lost to a song. It’s because I care… Oh yes. Also because I like to concern myself with other people’s business when my own bores me.”
The sides of my mouth went up in a smile before I could stop them. “That’s a good reason. My iPod isn’t with me today because the battery ran out.”
“That’s a good reason as well.” He stood up as the bus jerked to a stop. “Well, nice talking to you today. Bye.”
And then he walked off the bus.


That day, I went home and put the earbuds in my ears.
My thumb found the on button.
Yet I didn’t press it.
Instead, I slowly detached the earphone wire from the iPod. The iPod went on my bedside table.
The earbuds stayed in my ears.

I heard no music, yet I also heard no sound.




The next day, I purposely left my fully charged and functioning iPod at home. When I got on the bus, my friend stood up and moved to another seat. I looked at her questioningly and she smiled.
“You want to sit next to him, right?” Then she sat down in the two-seater before I could reply.

Yet, he never showed up.