Photographs

“213 Greyhound to Riverside California now boarding.” The muffled voice sounded through the bus station I checked my ticket to make sure that was the right bus for me I sighed as I approached the line of people loading onto the bus. You see I was born in Orange County, but the orphanage I was in was in Seattle, Washington.

“Ticket ma’am?” I looked at the man holding his hand out I held out the ticket and smiled when he handed it back with a stamp on the corner I got on the bus and found myself a row to myself. I looked out the window and sighed.

“Time to grow up Sarah.” I whispered to myself then heard someone sit down next to me, I looked over and saw a boy. Well not a boy he was around my age with dark hair and eyes. “Where are you headed?”

I blinked when he spoke to me. “Me?” I asked unsure if he was talking to me or if he was on the phone. “Yes you silly girl!” He said smiling at me.

“Oh, I’m headed to Riverside California.” I told him and watched him look at his own ticket. “I’m going to Huntington Beach, not too far from Riverside in fact like maybe 15 minutes apart on the PCH.” He said to me I smiled at him.

“Is there a reason you’re going alone?” He asked me; I frowned a little how did he know I was alone? Was it that obvious I was alone?

“I’m going to find my family.” I said plainly looking at the boy shifting in my seat as the bus pulled out of the lot. We were on our way to California and the knots in my stomach were getting tighter and tighter.

“Find your family?” He asked and nodded his head pushing his lips together in a straight line. “I don’t have a family,” He said to me and I looked at him with a slight tilt of my head.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, I don’t have a family anymore I’m 19 and leaving this shithole town for something better, you see my cousin has a band in Huntington beach and he says I can be a roadie for him make a little money, travel the world!”

“A band? That’s what you’re doing with your life?” I asked him and saw his smile fall. “Well yeah it sounds like fun, don’t you think?”

I gave him a shrug of my shoulders and then a slight nod. “I mean I guess so…”

I glanced out the window of the bus and sighed in relief seeing the scenery pass by in a blur, “By the way girl, my name is Johnny.”

I glanced at the boy flashing him a small smile, “I’m Sarah.”

The hours seemed to slowly drag on as the bus made its way into the station I shook the boy next to me, “Your stop pal,” I said to him and smiled when he stretched he shuffled to stand up and rub his eyes at the same time.

“Oh hey! Uh Sarah, here…” He handed me a paper and I looked at it tilting my head to the side as I saw his name and a phone number scribbled down. “Let me know how finding your family goes.”
As he got off the bus I shuffled in my seat gathering my belongings I walked off the bus and looked around inhaling the air around me, “Ah, California...” I said quietly to myself walking to the exit of the bus station.

I sat on a bench just outside the large double doors and looked at the name on the Paper I smiled a little and walked down the street. “Excuse me,” I asked a cop waving to him. “I need help I just got into town and I’m looking for a public library?”

I listened to the instructions the officer gave me as I smiled at him I turned on my heels beginning to walk to the closest Library for access to the internet so I could look for James Owen Sullivan in Orange County…

How many James Sullivan’s can there be in Orange County?