"Why do you want to travel on a Sunday? Why not wait until Monday, as there might not be passengers today?" My dad asked since I came home for Christmas and it was time to go back, but he wanted me to stay longer and not leave on the day that I had chosen.
[Source](https://unsplash.com/photos/people-standing-on-gray-concrete-floor-WsVr0RV5ACk
"You know school never vacated Dad; I just rushed down here so I can see you guys, and most of all, I have exams on the Monday you are suggesting, so I must be close by or in school before Monday to enable me to meet up." I responded.
"If you must travel on a Sunday, then no problem; I wish you a safe journey back to school." Dad said with a long face.
Time flies, and it was time to leave. I arrived at the bus station and did not find a single passenger, just like Dad said. I paid for the bus but had to wait for other passengers. I waited for hours and was starting to regret my choice of leaving on a Sunday, but I had no other choice than to leave that Sunday unless I wanted to risk missing my exams, as the journey from home to school was approximately 6 hours, and traveling on Monday with the plan of beating time to my exams was impossible.
After waiting for hours, I went to the cashier to ask for a refund, as there was no sign we would embark on the journey because not a single passenger had joined me, and I was already tired of waiting. "Can I get a refund?" I asked the cashier.
"Even your receipt said no refund after payment." The cashier responded, giving me a look.
"Well, I have been here for hours, and there is no sign we would actually embark on this journey. You guys cannot make an exemption? Like in cases like this?" I asked with a long face knowing that I really needed to travel, but since there were no passengers forthcoming, I was starting to consider my dad's choice of leaving on Monday and trying to beat time to my exams which is a big risk.
"You just have to wait a little more; I have like nine persons that have called and booked online." The cashier responded.
After hearing this, I went back to the bus and sat down, hoping that the passengers he talked about would show up and we would be able to start the journey as it was already getting late. About two hours later, the passengers the cashier talked about showed up, and there were now ten of us, and we needed eight more, but since it was late, the manager decided that we should just go, and the losses will be on the company.
"Our bus just left the bus station now." I rushed to tell my dad over the phone.
"Safe journey, dear son." Dad responded as he hung up.
I was glad we were finally able to leave, and I did not have to postpone. A few hours into the journey, the bus broke down near an unknown town; the area is famous for armed robbery attacks and even kidnapping. "So driver, what do we do? This area is known to be a bad area, and no one should be here at nightfall, and it is almost nightfall." Two passengers echoed all together since everyone was scared.
"I don't know; our only option is to try and fix the car, as there is no other bus driver at the bus station that will want to leave the station at this hour." The driver responded with his hands on his head.
"Call the company first; don't just conclude that there is no way we are supposed to stay here past 8 pm." One of the passengers said getting everybody even more scared.
"I did, but they were not giving me any positive response. All I can say is that we are on our own, and if you have relatives in nearby towns, I will suggest you start calling them now and find your way there, as I doubt a mechanic will be able to fix this at this time, and we still continue our journey. So everyone must go to town and be back tomorrow by 10 am. I am really sorry for the inconvenience, but it is for all our safety." The driver responded.
At this point we all knew we were in trouble, and we all had to start looking for ways to leave the area before nightfall and probably return the next day to continue our journey. Some passengers left to lodge in a hotel, but I did not have the money for such, and I rushed to call my dad.
"Hello Dad, the bus broke down in that dangerous area along Calabar Road, and the driver suggested we all leave the area and go to town and look for a safer place where we can spend the night and probably continue tomorrow." I said over the phone with so much fear in my voice.
"Don't worry; I will call a friend to come pick you up. Just wait, but you see that you should have just waited till tomorrow, right?" My dad asked
"Dad, I am about 3 hours away from school; at least it is like half the journey already, and I can get there on time from here, but from back home I doubt it. The only problem is the bus that got bad; if not, I would have arrived at school already and planned how to prepare for my exams." I responded.
A few minutes later, his friend came to the area and picked me up with all my baggage, as I intend to continue my journey from his house and not come back to the bus so I can meet up with my exams and not be delayed. We got to the house, and my night was as snug as a bug in a rug.
