That's Not My Name

* I rode the bus home with Gus last night. Gus gets on the bus at my stop; however, he has never once taken the van.

As we were walking to our cars, he talks about how some maintenance work is planned for our bus stop, which may require us to park our cars elsewhere.

"I wonder if Saul knows," I said. "He's always running late as it is."

Gus looked at me.

"Saul?"

"Yes," I said. "Or Nick."

"Yeah, Nick, that's his name," Gus said.

"Oh, everyone on the van calls him Saul."

"I only know him as Nick."

He will forever be known as Nick/Saul.

***

We're next to Port Authority. The guy who once complained to us about a new co-worker goes to hand us our morning papers. The girl who looks like Precious, however, blocks his path.

"I'm handing him his papers," she screams. "Park your fuckin' ass over there."