Through The Hedge

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Elinor had only been waiting at the bus stop for two or three minutes when the Number 37 pulled up. She was the only passenger to get on outside the snooker club but the bus was already almost full. She paid the driver the eighty pence fare and looked for a seat. As it happened, there was only one seat available on the lower deck and so Elinor found herself seated beside a young gentleman of rather neglected appearance. After a minute or two the young man introduced himself as Dillon and enquired after Elinor's name. Elinor pretended she hadn't heard and continued to stare in the opposite direction.

Dillon sighed rather theatrically and then tapped Elinor on the shoulder. She had no option but to turn and look at him and was surprised to see that he was holding a delicious-looking toffee apple. Despite the fact that Dillon was grinning in a rather disquieting fashion, Elinor found herself warming to her strange neighbour. Without so much as a by your leave, Elinor took a quick bite of his toffee apple and proceeded to lick her lips in a manner suggestive of great pleasure. Dillon was flabbergasted and looked at the toffee apple with such puzzlement that it seemed that he was confronted with the world's keenest problem. Then he began to chuckle very softly.

Elinor threw her head back and closed her eyes in order to savour the sugary sweet flavour that still lingered upon her tongue. Suddenly she felt a sharp pain in her side and she let out a squeal of anguish. She looked down for the source of the agony and was staggered to see blood seeping through her almost-new Marks and Spencer jacket. Then she noticed that Dillon was wiping a hefty knife on his sleeve, still chuckling to himself. Next he looked into her eyes and tipped her an exaggerated wink. Elinor pointed to the blood which was now soaking her skirt and tights and was beginning to drip onto the floor of the bus.

"Excuse me!" said Dillon. "But I think that this is my stop." And he got to his feet and squeezed past Elinor as she glared at him, dumbfounded. The bus slowed to a halt in front of the hairdresser's and Elinor watched Dillon jump off the bus and walk towards the Chinese takeaway. He even gave her a little wave before the bus pulled away. Elinor tried to wave back but she slid down in her seat and she had to use both her hands to stop her from sliding onto the floor. She tried to drag herself back upright but found that her strength was exhausted and as she toppled sideways across the length of the seat, she remembered how lovely the toffee apple had tasted and she made a mental note to buy one soon.