4
A few minutes after Lisa had reached the stop, a bus rumbled into view, spewing out clouds of smoke as it chugged up the High Street. Lisa stuck out her arm, waving frantically at the driver. He pulled into the stop, narrowly missing a puddle of dirty rainwater. Lisa hopped onto the bus, rattling change into the ticket machine. A few seconds later, it emitted a receipt covered with smudged writing. Lisa tore it free and carefully walked down the aisle, avoiding pushchairs and shopping trolleys as she searched for a seat.
The bus was packed full, but right at the back, Lisa spied a spare seat. She squeezed into it, gingerly holding her bridesmaid dress in its flimsy polythene packaging close to her chest. The man next to her tutted and rustled the paper he was reading in annoyance. Lisa
