He Picked the Wrong Bus

I clenched my fists so tight my nails dug into my palms.

"Wade, that's too much!"

"Too much?" Wade's voice got louder. "You're following me? Trying to make me look bad? Listen up, Melanie, if Sally isn't happy today, you can forget about driving your car away!"

Behind us, a driver stuck his head out and yelled, "Move it up front! The cops are on their way!"

Sally, though, looked like she was having fun. With the other drivers yelling in the background, she tilted her chin up and peered down at me like she was the queen of the world.

"Let's do this, Melanie," she said in a slow, clear voice, "Get out of the car, stand in front of me, and apologize out loud. Say, 'Ms. Larson, I was wrong. I shouldn't be jealous of you or bother you.' Say it, and we can all leave."

My head was spinning.

They had the nerve to treat me like that!

"Have you lost your mind?"

"You won't apologize?" Sally smirked. "Then we'll just wait. We're not in a hurry, but I'm not sure about you and your passengers, or the drivers behind us."

Wade chimed in, "Hear that? Sally's giving you a chance. Don't throw it away!"

The passengers had heard everything.

I heard someone mutter, "Who are these people..."

"They're bullies..."

"Great, there goes my perfect attendance. I'm going to get you two!"

"I'm going to be late for class, too. Waaa, I... I'm done for, might as well take you on since I'll get scolded anyway..."

I looked back at the passengers.

They were all strangers, some anxious, some upset, but most looked at me with sympathy.

An older gentleman shook his head at me, signaling me not to give in.

The honking behind us had turned into a loud mess, with people getting out of their cars to see what was going on.

If things kept up like that, the whole road would be stuck.

I was torn between doing my job right and feeling totally embarrassed.

"Come on!" Wade yelled, kicking the bus tire. "What's taking you so long? Get off and say sorry to Sally!"

His words were the final blow.

They had walked all over my pride, and then they were trying to break me completely.

My hands shook as I reached for the door button to get off.

"Let's see if they can handle the anger of the crowd if I open the door..." I thought to myself.

With a loud snap, the front door of the bus flew open.

I spun around, stunned, and saw a bunch of determined people storming out.

A voice came through the gap in the door.

"If those fools don't care about decency, then we know a thing or two about fighting!"