It was a typical Monday morning in the office when Ben's car broke down on the side of the road, forcing him to take the bus to work. Little did he know, this would set off a chain of events that would lead to a most... eventful day.
As Ben boarded the bus, he was greeted by the lovely aroma of diesel fuel and stale air. Not the most pleasant combination, but it was a sacrifice he was willing to make for the sake of being on time.
However, things took a turn for the worse when the bus's automated voice announced, "Next stop, Panhandler's Paradise!" The bus lurched to a stop, and Ben, being the only passenger on the bus, was the only one who got off.
As he stood on the sidewalk, a man with a look of pure, unadulterated anger on his face, approached him, his face beet red and his mustache a-quiver with rage. "You!" he shouted, pointing a shaking finger at Ben. "You're the one who's been takin' all the good parking spots, aren't you?!"
Benny, still dazed from his commute, stuttered, "I... I don't know what you're talkin' about, sir." The angry panhandler's face turned an even deeper shade of red. "Don't lie to me, you bus-riding, parking-hoggin' menace! I've seen you do it! I've seen you park in the handicap spot!"
The crowd that had gathered began to murmur, "Ooo, drama!" and "Someone's got their parking spot taken!" The panhandler's anger only grew, his face now a deep, pulsing purple.
Just as it seemed things were about to escalate, Ben's coworker, Jane, appeared on the scene. "Hey, Ben, what's going on?" she asked, eyes wide with concern. "This guy," the panhandler pointed, "he's the one who's been takin' all the good parkin' spots!"
Jane looked at Ben, then back at the panhandler, and said, "Actually, I'm pretty sure you're just makin' that up. Ben's a bit of a scatterbrain, but he's not that bad."
The panhandler's face contorted in rage, "How dare you!" he shouted, before storming off, mutterin' something about "bus-ridin' menace's" and "handicapped parking lot takin' son of a gun."
Benny and Jane stood there, frozen in shock, before bursting out in laughter. "Well, that was fun," she said with a chuckle. "Yeah, I guess you could say that," Ben replied, still chuckling.
As they walked to the office, Ben couldn't help but think, "You know, I think I'm going to have to get out of the city. This place is a little too much for me."
Or maybe that's just the bus.