“It’s very
easy Cindy. You get on bus #10 right
outside the station and stay on till the last stop. I will be waiting for you. You can do it,” Denise said to Cindy over the
phone. “If you have any trouble you know
how to reach me.” With that the conversation was over leaving Cindy wondering
if she had made a mistake to leave the comforts of her homeland to work in
Qingdao, China. In fact, Denise had
sounded a little too cheerful for Cindy.
Did she know something Cindy didn’t?
Cindy found
the bus stop easily enough and maneuvered her luggage onto the crowded bus
before paying for her ticket. A nice man
saw her struggling and offered her a seat, which she took without hesitation. She
gave him her best smile of gratitude in return. She hugged her backpack to her chest and
waited. Finally the bus began to rumble
down the unfamiliar roads to her new life and new job.
An hour
later she awoke to the bus driver screaming in her ear what she could only
assume meant they had reached the last stop.
Grunting under the weight of her suitcases he deposited them on the
sidewalk and drove off. When the dust
settled, Cindy looked around and realizing she was alone for the first time
since landing in Beijing she nearly collapsed into tears. Sitting on her suitcase she reached into her
pocket for her phone and tried to punch in the numbers but couldn’t read well
in the dark. The lack of streetlights
was not helping. No matter, Denise was
not here to pick her up and was not answering her phone. Was it
really that late? Where was she?
A noise
from behind startled her out of her melancholy thoughts. A piercing headlight was headed her way. The man drove right up and tried to grab her
bag, missing by mere centimeters. Cindy braced herself in case he came back
around. Was it her imagination or was he
trying to offer her a ride? She didn’t want to be tomorrow’s headline but she
also didn’t want to be alone in an obviously secluded place. This would never happen in America. Just when the light was approaching again she
heard a honk and whipped around to see a woman waving frantically from a taxi
begging her to join her for a ride.
Taxis are better than motorcycles Cindy thought and rushed over as
gracefully as she could without tripping over her luggage.
Once seated
in the taxi a relieved Cindy attempted her first conversation with the
beautiful Chinese woman. “Thank
you. Do you speak English?”
“Yes, I
do. Where do you need to go?” she
replied in perfect English with just a hint of a British accent.
“Qingdao
University please,” Cindy whispered, her energy spent. Just mulling over what could have been with
the motorcycle rider caused her anxiety all over again.
“My name is
Apple and I teach English at the university.
This taxi is going there. What do
I call you?” Apple asked Cindy politely.
“I’m Cindy.”
Perking up she continued, “Are we almost there?
I was supposed to meet someone but they didn’t show up.”
“Just
around the corner. Maybe your friend
didn’t know the route changed recently.
It is not safe to be traveling these parts alone at night,” Apple
replied.
“No
kidding. Thanks for rescuing me Apple.”
“My
pleasure.” Apple climbed over Cindy and
enthusiastically waved at someone as they passed a main gate. “Hey, there’s
Denise. What is she doing here?”
“
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