by Samantha Marie Chiaino, 16
Sally looks lost around the airport
Baggage carousel … baggage carousel …
Where is it?
Danny looks around the airport
And finds the baggage carousel right away
He watches bags go around
Waiting for his luggage tag to appear
With his name in blue cursive
Sally walks down another hallway
Baggage carousel, baggage carousel
Where is it?
Danny finally sees it
His luggage with the cursive blue handwriting
Finally
Danny walks away as a woman quickly walks over to the baggage carousel
Sally quickly walks towards the baggage carousel as a guy walks away
Sally waits at the baggage carousel
Excited to start her vacation
I’m going to swim with a dolphin
And scuba dive
And parasail
Oh and watch the sunset from my balcony
Danny grunts as he waits at the cab line
Looking down at his watch
All he sees are the wasted minutes that have passed today
My plane got delayed
I had a layover
With another delay
And now I can’t even get a cab!
Sally’s luggage finally arrives
She joins the cab line
Sally looks at the man on her right
Perking up at the sight of a familiar face
“Ever been here before?”
Danny waves towards a cab coming from the left
Sally leans forward and elevates her tone
“Ever been here before?”
“No.”
Danny thinks about the last 3 times he’s visited
The Cab Driver marks the irony
Of the song on the radio speaking about money
The moment he stops and lets people get in
“You two!”
Danny grunts at the realization that Sally is hijacking
The peaceful cab ride he desired
The Cab Driver peers in his rearview mirror
“Where to?”
At the same moment
Danny and Sally say the same hotel
The Cab Driver nods and thinks
What a lovely couple.
Danny sits on the far-most left seat
Peering out the window
He sees nothing but dirty alleys filled with trash cans
And the occasional black cat
A sliver of Sally’s body surpasses the divider between the
Right and middle seat
Peering out the window
The heavenly view of the ocean steals her breath
Children race one another along the shoreline
Each child’s attire perfectly matches the ocean’s vibrant
Shades of blue
When The Cab Driver drops them off
He takes account that the man climbs out on his side
And the lady climbs over and exits through the same door
With a push and leap out
She closes the door and tips The Cab Driver
“Thank you! Have a great day!”
The Cab Driver mirrors her grin
The lady races to meet up with the man
Looks like a lovely couple!
Middletown, New Jersey
Reader’s note: Different Ways of Life introduces the perspectives of Sally and Danny, with Sally serving as more positive compared to Danny. Despite their different outlooks (Danny sees trash cans and dirty alleys, while Sally sees a blue ocean and children all during the same car ride), the cab driver insists that they are a lovely couple. This irony was extremely interesting and very enjoyable to read, also reminding me of my own two dispositions when traveling: exhausted or enthusiastic, yet both are paired together.
Bridge Ink 