The Intersection

Louisa’s swollen feet barely left the street pavement as they struggled to push her cart to the sidewalk. Midway through the journey, the signal changed, and a flood of traffic surged down Fifth Avenue. A wave of terror ran through her frail body as cars and trucks thundered by; horns honked in disgust. The roar echoed in Louisa’s head, and she forgot about the cold morning wind that ran through her tattered coat. She froze as a crumpled plastic bag flew off of her cart.

James only partly listened to the morning news as he navigated his black BMW through the morning rush hour.

“What is your greatest fear?” queried the voice on the radio.
“Well Spence, based on the current price-earnings ratios, stock prices will continue to fall and…”

…and, I will lose my condominium and my car, James interrupted with his thoughts. He had worked hard (and borrowed heavily) to purchase the lifestyle that he had dreamed about as a teenager.

As a chilled rain began to fall, Louisa forgot her fear of the traffic and stumbled forward across the street. She had to get the bag back.

The BMW’s brakes squealed as it stopped a few inches short of a filthy plastic bag leading an old woman across the street. James caught his breath and instinctively reached for the horn, but he paused at the sight of the woman straining to pick up the bag. Without thinking, he got out of his car, put the bag on the cart, and carefully wheeled it to the safety of the sidewalk. Louisa said nothing, but she strained her hunched neck upward to look at him and smile.

James returned to his car, disdainful of the honking and gestures of the other drivers. He turned off the radio.

Word count: 298