The city looked the same
Rich with life and heat and sin
She took it in, so much, so fast
Her courage wearing thin
As the crowded bus weathered winding roads
Street by street memories returned in spades
The woman’s past emerged relentlessly
Emotions not felt for decades
A language once unknown to her
Filled the air with exotic flair
Voices shared contrasting fears and hopes
A whispered prayer, a failed affair
She stared down the narrow aisle
Gently trembling in her seat
She tried and tried to no avail
To hide herself and be discrete
Her hair, coal black with streaks of grey
Matched the weary lines upon her face
And yet as she turned toward the window
A younger self gazed back in place
The woman gasped in distress
She recalled those clothes, her hair, that night
An evening oh so long ago
A fateful destiny, not quite right
Closing her eyes fixed nothing
It only made everything more clear
She couldn’t stop the memory
Those earlier voices she could no longer hear
Her feet began to move
As the next stop came into view
Chills ran up and down her spine
But stopping herself she couldn’t do
Alone on the street, the woman sighed
Nothing had seemed to change
Tall lamplights broke through the dark
Casting glows seemingly out of range
As she sat on the bench her fists grew clenched
The woman’s body wouldn’t still
And as she waited for the next bus
She turned to look uphill
Her vision filled with what had happened here
A slender silhouette came into view
The girl's skirt billowed and swayed with each passing step
The wind made her long dark hair slightly askew
Too young and confident to comprehend
What was to happen next
The girl smiled and fiddled with her watch
Sitting down on the opposite side of the bench
The older woman’s eyes grew large
“Don’t wait for the bus, I beg of you!”
Her cries and pleas went on unheard
Fate she could not undo
She tried to grab the girl’s shoulder
Her hand cut through, slicing thin air
For the girl was simply an apparition
The older woman began to sob and swear
Three shadows entered the scene
Horrid haunts that changed a life
The woman knew what would take place
Work of bitter, lust-filled men and a hidden knife
The scar that ran across her lower back
Heated up with pain
The woman yelled at the moving outlines
Her threats were made in vain
Just as their frightening forms came close
A calming voice caused them to disappear
Her younger self faded out of sight
She was brought back to the current year
A tall young man knelt before her
His worried gaze scrutinizing her face
The woman looked deep into his eyes
Pulling him close in a tight embrace
Although the woman could not rewrite her past
She felt relief flow through her veins
A bitterness had left her, she felt renewed
Like Jean Valjean released from chains
As the bus came to a stop before them both
She thanked the man with all her heart
The woman got on and took a seat
For the first time it felt like a fresh start
As the empty bus weathered winding roads
Street by street memories faded in cascades
The woman’s future blossomed with hope
Emotions not felt for decades
The city looked the same
Rich with life and heat and sin
She took it in, bit by bit with ease
Newfound courage shone from within
