An Intimate Stranger: The Struggles of a Lonely Wife

So, after scarfing down dinner at her folks' place, Ellie Baker hopped on the bus home around 8 PM. The bus was pretty much a ghost town, with most of the seats wide open. She made her way to the double seat near the back door and plopped down by the window.

It was summer, so it stayed light out later, but the streetlights were already doing their thing, and the neon signs from the shops were buzzing and flickering like they had too much coffee.

Ellie stared out the window, her brain buzzing with all the chit-chat from Mr. and Mrs. Baker. Plus, she couldn't stop thinking about how her cousin Fiona's kid was gonna be a month old in just two days.

Fiona had only tied the knot a year ago, and now she had a one-month-old baby. Meanwhile, Ellie had been hitched for six years, and there was still no baby in sight. She kept telling everyone that she and George both didn't have physiological problems, that George was just swamped with work and always jetting off on business trips. They had decided to wait a couple more years until his job chilled out before diving into the whole parenthood thing.

At first, their families were cool with it and didn't make a big deal, but over the years, she couldn't pinpoint when it happened, everyone started getting all "concerned" about her, making her gradually more anxious.

Ellie was deep in her thoughts when she suddenly felt someone plop down next to her. Instinctively, she turned her head and was totally floored by what she saw.

It was a young man, probably in his early twenties, rocking a simple light blue short-sleeved shirt.

He had this ridiculously handsome face, with features so perfect they could make anyone do a double-take. In today's lingo, he was definitely "hot" or "attractive."

But what really threw Ellie for a loop wasn't just his good looks. It was the fact that the side of his face looked eerily similar to her husband, George Stone. Even his gentle and refined vibe was spot on.

Her mind couldn't help but flash back to the first time she met George. It was like all the cells in her body were transported back to that afternoon in the park six years ago, when the headmaster introduced George to her. It was a weird, almost surreal feeling...

The guy must've felt Ellie staring because he turned his head and gave her an awkward but polite smile.

"Uh... Is this seat taken?" he asked, his voice warm and kinda playful.

His question snapped Ellie back to reality. She pulled herself together, feeling her cheeks heat up.

"Nope, it's all yours," she replied softly, shaking her head.

"Oh, I thought someone was here," he said, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Ellie had no clue how to respond, so she just awkwardly bit her lip and turned to look out the window again.

But in the window's reflection, she could see the guy still looking at her. She could even feel his gaze, which made her super uncomfortable.

She frowned and instinctively scooted closer to the window, almost pressing her shoulder against it. She lifted her right hand to hold her left arm, slightly crossing her chest in a defensive move.

This posture made the guy's gaze follow her black hair, past her ears, and down to the fair skin of her neck peeking out from her shirt collar. He blinked and finally looked away.

Her ears turned red with embarrassment.

Even though the guy had turned away in the window's reflection, Ellie still felt uneasy for some reason. She couldn't help but keep her attention on him, even though he wasn't looking at her anymore.

After what felt like an eternity and three more stops, she finally reached her destination. She let out a sigh of relief as the bus came to a halt and quickly stood up.

The guy was polite; knowing she was getting off, he didn't just turn to the side. Instead, he stood up and moved aside to make way for her, flashing her a smile.

Ellie bit her lip again, managing to force out a smile that barely qualified as one in response to his politeness.

With one hand gripping her bag strap on her shoulder, she lowered her head and walked out of her seat.

As she passed by the guy, she noticed he was tall, almost the same height as her husband, George.

She lightly pursed her lips, quickly got off the bus, and without stopping for a moment, headed towards her residential area. She didn't slow down until she heard the bus driving away.

Finally, she turned around to look back, but the bus was already long gone.