The Greyhound finally rumbled to a stop well after sunset. The young man leapt from his seat, leaving Mrs "I'm not one to gossip" behind, and practically ran toward the exit. Never had one trip been so grueling! But then again the bus had stopped at every hole-in-the-wall cowtown between wherever he was now and back home in Florida! He made a mental note to tell his dad what a total jerk he was for making him ride the bus as soon as he spoke to him on the phone. But at last it was over, and he could at least get away from that rambling old bat who'd blustered on about everything from politics (like he actually cared at his age) to knitting patterns while they'd made the trip from Orlando.
For several moments there was considerable confusion and scuffling as each traveler reached for their bags and pushed and shoved their way toward the door. For one horrifying moment he thought Mrs Chatty-Kathy was about catch up with him again. Nosy old biddy! She'd made more than one effort during the trip to find out "just who it was he was visiting." He might not have known exactly who this supposed relative was, but he wasn't about to be subjected to even more awkwardness by some nosy old bat standing by, taking in every detail so she could run to all her busybody friends and spill her guts! But finally the crowd began to spill out of the bus and into the tiny depot, and the young man was able to begin searching for whoever would be waiting for him. The only problem was he didn't know who that was!
"There should be a sign. Someone should be holding a sign." More than once the young man mumbled under his breath, remembering the times he'd been through airports with his father. Upon arriving and disembarking from a flight weren't there always people holding signs saying something like, "Car for Mr So-N-So?," or "Mrs Somebody?" For several minutes the young man scanned the ever-thinning crowd as people met and greeted their families and visitors departing the station. But as the teeming mass dwindled away into the surrounding darkness a terrible reality dawned on the young man. There was no one here for him!
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"Excuse me?" The small voice that spoke so startled Mary Sue Elton that she gave a yelp of surprise and sent more than a few of her papers flying into the air. She'd believed the bus station long-since deserted! There were hardly ever any travelers at this time of the evening, and the next departure wouldn't leave until morning anyway. Everyone knew that! She attempted to arrange her features into a stern look of agitation as she peered over her spectacles at whoever this was who'd been so ignorant as to disrupt her late-night work. But what she saw when she peered up at the speaker quickly melted her heart.
The young man was attempting to speak calmly and not become upset, but it was obvious that he was very agitated. "Yes? Can I help you?" This was all it took. The barrier of fear and worry broke, and the nothing short of a verbal tidal wave came spilling out.
"I'm sorry to bother you, but you see I'm new here. I've only just gotten off the bus that arrived a while ago, and I thought someone was going to be here to pick me up, but I can't find anyone. I've checked my ticket several times to make sure I'm in the right town, and this is it, but as you can see there's nobody here except me, and you of course. I shouldn't be so worried about it, but like I said, I'm a stranger here. I'm supposed to be spending some time with some distant relative of mine, but I've never met this person, and I have no idea what they look like. I don't think they've ever seen me either, unless it's a picture or something, so I can't help but be afraid maybe they didn't recognize me when I got off the bus. And since I don't have a phone number for this person, well, I'm not able to call anyone, and......and.....well, I don't know what to do."
Mary Sue stared at the young man, his eyes moist and voice trembling as he explained his dilemma. Who on earth would send a youngster on such a trip alone? "May I see your ticket, please?" The young man blushed profusely at the unspoken suggestion. "Oh, I'm sure I got off at the right station............but yes, here it is." Mary Sue gave the boy a warm smile as she took the crinkled bit of ticket and studied it. "Hmmm.....yes, you're definitely at the right station. So who was supposed to pick you up when you arrived here?" "I......I.....don't know."
She stared at the young man. "You don't know?" "No ma'am, I'm afraid I don't know who they are." Mary Sue's heart went out to the young man. He was obviously humiliated, his face now crimson. "Well, I'm sorry to tell you this, but I'm afraid if you don't who you're visiting I can't help you get to them." The young man began to shed a few tears in earnest at this statement. "Please, ma'am, isn't there anything you can do? You see I've never been here before. I've never met this family member before, because.....well.....because of some family situations."
Mary Sue's heart truly hurt for the young lad. Bless him! What an awful situation, to be in a strange town, not knowing where you were really headed, and to not even know the name of the individual you were visiting! "Well let me see that ticket again. Maybe I can glean some bit of information from your ticket. Now what did you say your name was again?" "Dylan, ma'am, Dylan McManus." Mary Sue's wrinkled face split into a wide smile. "McManus did you say? Well that makes things much easier much quicker! There is only one family of McManus's in town now.......well, actually two, but I usually associate them with Betty Jo......but anyway, I'm rambing! Well then, let me ring Betty for you. You'll be on your way in no time!"
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Mason had just finished putting the dinner dishes away when the phone rang, a rather tense voice on the other end.
"Hello?" "Yes, is this the residence of Aidan McManus?" "Yes it is. May I ask who's calling?" "This is Mary Sue Elton at the bus depot. I'm afraid I'm in a bit of an awkward situation that requires your help." "Oh, hello Mrs Elton. This is Mason, Mason Alexander. How can we help you?" "Mason? Well bless my soul, how are you dear?" "I'm fine Mrs Elton, just fine. Did you say you needed my or Aidan's help?" "Oh yes! Well.....you see Mason this is a bit of an awkward thing to say over the phone, but I've just gotten off with Betty Jo, you know, Aidan's mother? Well, I told her that a young man was here to visit, a Dylan McManus. I told her there must've been some bit of a mixup, as the young man was expecting someone to receive him here at the station. Unfortunately however that didn't happen, and the young man is still here with me. He is rather upset, bless him."
Mason's heart practically stopped beating, and his breathing became shallow.
"Mrs Elton did you say there, indeed, was a young man there with you?" "Yes dear, a very pleasant young man named Dylan. Anyway, I phone Betty to explain, but I'm afraid she wasn't too enthused about the whole situation. She......well, that is......she......." A long sigh sounded on the other end of the phone. "You might as well know Mason that Betty Jo didn't want any part of the situation. I don't know why she was so uncooperative, and I not asking you to tell me. It's none of my business. But whatever's the matter, I've got a young man here in tears because he's stranded in a foreign bus station!"
"Oh Mrs Elton, I am so, so very sorry! I'm afraid neither Aidan or myself can leave the mountain yet. The road's still not been cleared. But don't fret; I'll see what's to be done as soon as I get off the phone with you!"
The elderly lady's voice became warm once again. "There's no hurry dear. I understand completely. I'll see to it the young man's taken care of until someone can receive him properly!"
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The bus station was almost deserted when Betty Jo McManus arrived, half skidding to a stop in the still-icy parking lot. She'd made the trip from the opposite end of town in record time, quite a feat considering snow still lay in heaps upon the ground and the roads had only just been cleared for travel. A quick check in the mirror told her that her hair was presentable before she wrenched the door of her car open and half-ran into the station. She muttered several grumbling words to herself before finally reaching the entrance, slipping and sliding up the icy steps. Of all times to have make a trip like this, ten o'clock at night!
Betty had been firm with Aidan when he'd presented the idea to her of meeting the young man. She had no interest whatsoever in meeting the illegitimate whelp Brad had fathered while he and she were still married! But that resolution had been shattered swiftly, not of her own deciding, but from a frantic telephone call from Mason. The road from the mountaintop, still having not been cleared by road crews, had proven impassable. Mason had called, practically in tears, to tell her they'd received a call from the Greyhound terminal, announcing they had an underage traveler waiting on them.
Betty Jo had, of course, resisted the plea from the boys with all her might, citing every other alternative she could think of who might be able to make the trip. This was too much to bear! But in the end there was no escaping a cruel twist of fate. She, Betty Jo, would, at least as long as the weather remained uncooperative, be responsible for Bradley McManus' other child! So with hastily thrown on clothes and a quick brushing of her hair Betty Jo had raced out the door on an emergency rescue mission. But despite her best efforts and determination to remain uncaring what she saw when she stepped through the door of the bus terminal practically brought her to tears.
Only one passenger remained in the bus terminal at such a late hour, a young man asleep in a sleeping bag by the terminal service desk. He was a lovely young man, appearing to be no more than his early teens. Betty Jo guessed him to be no older than fourteen. There was no resemblance between he and Aidan whatsoever. Where Aidan stood tall and broad-shouldered this young man appeared to be slight of stature. Betty Jo guessed him to be no taller than herself. His dark brown hair was cropped in a close, neat cut around his head. His face, though beginning to show signs of physical change of adolescence, was round with tiny freckles across his cheeks.
It was clear that Mary Sue Elton, the ancient clerk who'd worked at the Greyhound terminal as long as anyone could remember, hadn't been sure when anyone would be able to make the trip to claim the young man. She'd gone out of her way to make him as comfortable as possible, laying layers of blankets underneath the wrinkled old sleeping bag he lay within, and wrapping him in an old quilt. Still the sight of the young man sleeping on the floor of a deserted bus station tugged at Betty Jo's heart. And it was at that second she realized the truth; this young man was every bit as much a victim of Brad's selfish lifestyle as Aidan!
It was true, this young man was a reminder of everything Brad had done throughout his and Betty's marriage. But no child is responsible for it's parents' unwise choices! This young man hadn't chosen to be conceived out of marriage; he'd not asked for the cruel, medieval label "bastard!" Brad's letter to her had made it clear that the young man's maternal family had not only cut off the boy's mother when she was alive, but shunted the boy from relative to relative until Brad had left she and Aidan to move to him. And now with his mother gone and Brad facing cancer this young man was alone!
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"Dylan?.......Dylan?" Dylan McManus was aroused by a hand gently shaking his shoulder. He'd not been asleep long. How in the world were you supposed to sleep on the floor anyway! He blearily blinked until his eyes swam into focus and the kindly face of the elderly lady who'd prepared the makeshift bed for him appeared. "Hello dear. I'm sorry to wake you, but there's someone here to take you home."
Dylan was on his feet in an instant as his heart thundered within him. Finally, after all this time, he was about to meet his family! Who would this new family member be? An uncle, an aunt, a distant cousin? But as Mrs Elton stepped out of the way and Dylan gained his first view of the person he'd be staying with, the portly woman who shuffled nervously from foot to foot was not who he expected.
"Hello Dylan. I'm.........I'm Betty Jo McManus. I'm.........your brother's mother." "My.......brother?" The woman gave him a weak smile. "Yes, you have a half-brother, Aidan. I'm afraid he wasn't able to meet you himself tonight. There's just been a terrible snowstorm, and he and his friend Mason are still snowed in. You'll be spending the night with me. I expect Aidan will be able to take you home with him tomorrow.........."