Nondescript

Elijah was the sort of person that could disappear in a “crowd” of three. There was nothing about his looks that stood out. Medium height, build, hair color, skin tone, and immediate impression. He was both an “everyman” and no-one in particular. That suited him just fine, though.

He checked the balance of his savings account, what was left over from his mother’s life insurance after paying her debts. He stepped out of the shotgun shack he’d inherited from his grandparents by way of his mother. A quick scan of the small, gravel plot showed him no weeds on his tiny property.

A trip to town, he thought, was the plan for the day. There was something that drove him, compelled him, to help others. Elijah didn’t feel like himself without it. The fact that those he helped couldn’t recognize him after was fine. He didn’t do it for praise, just to feel — if only for a moment — normal.

He parked his second-hand, beige Toyota in the middle of the grocery store lot. A woman with a full cart, including a toddler and an infant in a convertible car seat, walked out of the store to her SUV parked close to the doors. She wrangled the children into the car, then unloaded the groceries.

Elijah got out of his car, noting the distance to the doors, the cart corral, and the woman’s children in her car. He waved a hand over his head, “You can just leave that there and I’ll take it,” he called out.

The look of relief on her face was all he needed to see. She gave a harried smile and got into her SUV and pulled away. Elijah retrieved the cart and returned it to the stack inside the door. He hadn’t planned on shopping — or anything else for that matter — but a cold drink sounded good.

A bottle of decaffeinated iced tea in hand, he stood in line at the cash register. The man in front of him was growing agitated with the cashier and began to berate her. As his tirade increased, Elijah saw him reach behind his back to pull a pistol.

Time slowed for Elijah, allowing him to toss his drink on the shelf and grab the man’s wrist before he could draw. With the man surprised by the unexpected grab, he froze.

Elijah leaned forward, his arm around the man’s waist, and whispered in his ear, “I know you’re having a bad day, but it doesn’t have to end like this. Please, for the sake of everyone who loves you, don’t do it. The young lady checking your groceries isn’t who you’re really mad at. Look at her, she’s frightened and crying, and why? No reason.”

He stepped back and picked up his drink from the shelf. The man in front of him stood for a moment, then his shoulders dropped. His hand, still empty, fell to his side and he stared down at nothing. Tears pooled in his eyes and began to fall down his cheeks.

His voice barely above a whisper, he said, “I’m sorry, it’s not you, you don’t deserve this. I don’t know what to do, I don’t know….”

Elijah handed the man a calling card for a crisis phone line. “It’ll work out. These people can help.”

As he walked back to his car, he saw the man sitting on the sidewalk near the store, talking on his phone, tears streaming down his face. The people on the phone were good, Elijah knew that. They had helped him when his mother passed.

He got into his car and pulled the pistol he’d lifted from the man’s holster. He ejected the magazine, pulled the slide back to eject the round in the chamber and let it stay locked open. He put the round into the magazine and set the pistol on the passenger seat. His next stop was obvious; the police station to turn in a found weapon.

Part of him felt bad for taking the man’s pistol, but the other part was concerned that he might carry through with the next encounter. Of course, the possibility that he might harm himself was there, too, and Elijah wasn’t going to let that happen.

He’d been honest with the officer about how he ended up in possession of the pistol and the officer led him to an interrogation room and told him to wait, as they might be charging him with felony theft. After he’d waited for an hour, he stepped out of the room and asked the officer watching the rooms if he was still needed. She seemed to be surprised to see anyone there, looked at her clipboard, and told him that he was free to go.

Next to the police station was a used bookstore, and he went in to browse. While he looked over the shelves of used paperbacks, the officer that had taken his statement and told him to wait in interrogation walked in. He browsed the shelves next to Elijah with a slight nod and no hint of recognition.

Elijah found a series of paperback fantasy novels by a dead author he’d never heard of and picked them up. The entire series was there, so no danger of getting invested and having to wait for the next. He loaded the books into his trunk and was about to get in when he saw a runaway stroller.

Time slowed down as he dodged through the crossing traffic. He reached a point past the intersection, in front of the oncoming stroller and braced himself. Straddled wide so the wheels wouldn’t hit his legs, he grabbed the sides of the stroller and shifted his weight to his right foot, bringing it to a stop in a large arc.

He pushed the stroller out of the street to the sidewalk and looked inside. Expecting a baby, he was surprised to see a small dog with a pink bow on its head. The dog seemed happy to see him, licking his hand and wiggling under his pets.

A few others gathered around to see what was going on. The elderly woman toddling down the hill was beside herself. “My baby! My baby!”

Elijah handed control of the stroller to her. “Safe and sound.”

“Thank you so much!” She knelt in front of the stroller and began baby-talking the dog. The crowd, seeing it was a dog, began to clear. “Was my baby scared? Was that a scary, scary ride? I know, right? My poor baby Posie. Mama’s here, and you’re okay now. We’ll get you some num-nums from the doggie bakery. What a big day.”

Elijah had stepped back and turned to go when the woman stopped him. “Yes?” he asked.

“Did you see the young man that saved my baby? I wanted to thank him.”

Elijah smiled and shrugged. “Sorry,” he said, as he walked back to his car. It was better that he didn’t have to deal with her — or anyone at all, really. He was truly unremarkable, instantly forgettable, and that suited him just fine.