pages Dirty Death

by Sara Dobie Bauer

Published in Issue No. 227 ~ April, 2016

Bus

“I’m the traveler. Right here.” I waved my hand, but he didn’t acknowledge. I suppose that was when I started to suspect I was dead, at the train station. People had been ignoring me all day, from the taxi driver on Fifth, to the coffee girl who usually gave me a wink and a smile. I thought they maybe didn’t like my filthy suit. I couldn’t remember why it was filthy in the first place. I just remembered crossing the street. Some lady told me to be careful, and I woke up in the gutter, late for work. They didn’t acknowledge me there either. So I was dead, and all I could think about was how I didn’t even like the suit I’d picked out that morning. The tie was too purple, a gift from an ex-girlfriend, but I’d been in a rush. I’d rushed to untangle myself from the cocktail waitress in my bed and hurried to get to work; little did I know, I’d been rushing to get myself nailed by a crosstown bus.

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Sara Dobie Bauer is a writer, model, and mental health advocate with a creative writing degree from Ohio University. She spends most days at home in her pajamas as a book nerd for SheKnows.com. Her short story, “Don’t Ball the Boss,” was nominated for the 2015 Pushcart Prize. She lives with her husband and two precious pups in Northeast Ohio, although she would really like to live in a Tim Burton film. Red Moon Romance will publish her novel, Bite Somebody, in 2016. Read more of her work at http://SaraDobieBauer.com.