Under The Light (flash fiction)

Rough movements of the bus rocked him back and forth. Omar slanted his head secretly to the left.  The tattoo on the man’s arm was huge – a beautiful black script, like something from a seventeenth century stately invitation. The man flashed the bus driver a transfer ticket and began to walk towards Omar. Omar turned one eye back to the driver and the long expanse of road ahead while his other eye remained on the tattooed man who had just boarded the bus at the corner of Vincent and W 23^rd Street.

Gyrating to an uneven rhythm, the man sat in a vacant seat next to Omar and adjusted himself. In his right hand was the ticket. His fist was clenched giving him the appearance of a single handed, but feisty welterweight.

Wiping his forehead, the man looked at Omar. Omar’s black Oxfords sparkled under the flickering light of the bus. His tailored suit was flawless and so was his linear fade.   

     “Nona es! Hacerse el loco,” the man mumbled.

Next to the man’s Wife Beater, jeans that seemed to be five times his size, a silver pendant, and several other tattoos, Omar looked like a pristine flower placed next to a giant cactus.  He hugged his brown leather briefcase tightly, almost blistering his palms.  The man snickered.  What was a comemierda doing on this side of Los Angeles, on a Friday night?  

With a gentle nod, the tattooed man smiled at Omar.

    “What-up Muchacho,” he said.

To Omar’s surprise, the man had perfect white teeth. But the whiteness did nothing to lighten up the rigid air between them that stuck out like a blood stained white sheet. Omar turned his head to the window. He saw himself. He was a thousand and a half miles away in suburban Morgan County, Georgia. Now, here he was in Watts, in LA, sitting next to a gangster. No shit!

After a few tosses and turns, the bus reached a red light and came to a sudden halt. The tattooed man scooted forward. He tucked his transfer ticket in one pocket. From his other pocket, he pulled out a booklet and began to read.

© AH 2011