Morning had chalk on its hands
like a pool hall opened the sky and called the first shot
air smelled like floor cleaner and oranges from a truck that parked wrong on purpose
I turned the key and the dash purred a low yes
the wind chime tapped once and decided to watch

First ping was a bar with the door locked and lights still dreaming
a man in a team jacket waited with a cue case
league match across town he said and my partner’s late like rent
He slid in and unzipped the case slow
polished the cue with a cloth that carried a hundred nights
He told me he used to hustle but now he keeps score for peace of mind
said winning makes people loud
losing teaches geometry
At a red light he sighted along the cue toward the horizon and said that pocket is always moving
We reached the rec center early
He pressed a chalk cube into my palm
for aim he said
or for blue fingers that look like you worked

Next came a baker with a crate of day olds
donate run
She talked about ovens the way people talk about dogs
loyal if you feed them
moody if you tease
She said she likes the hours before the shop opens because the city is simple then
flour
heat
coffee
no votes yet
We hit two shelters and a tiny fridge under a mural of hands
At the last stop she tucked a cinnamon roll under the seat belt like a passenger with short legs
for your later she said and bounced away

A lull slid in with soft shoes
I parked by a repair shop where a radio played a song from a decade that refused to retire
A boy on a scooter counted cracks in the sidewalk and celebrated prime numbers
I ate half the roll and saved half again
math I could trust

Ping from a school loading zone
a band director wearing patience like armor waved me over
He loaded three tubas and a storm of music stands
parade practice at the stadium he said
We drove slow so brass would not bruise
He told me teenagers breathe like trumpets in the morning and like kettles at night
At the gate he handed me a small baton
use for traffic or for pretending the world will listen he said

Then a woman at a flower cart who wore a jacket of pockets
each pocket held ribbon or scissors or a secret
She needed the wholesale market across town
On the way she said I do funerals and first nights and the difference is mostly how people grip the stems
She asked what drivers do with grief in the back seat
I said we change lanes with it
She nodded and tied a thin yellow ribbon around my mirror
so even empty vases know the plan

Midmorning we crossed into a neighborhood that smelled like tortillas and fresh paint
A painter flagged me with a roller tray in one hand and a bucket lid in the other
community mural second coat
He said he only paints birds now
wings remind brick walls there is more air available
At a stop he studied my dash and laughed at the baton and chalk
said you are ready for rehearsal and geometry at once
He left a feather made of tape
stick it where you need a sky he said

A courier climbed in with a flat package and a face that had run out of shortcuts
deliver to courthouse records
says urgent and nobody agrees
He told me his app keeps asking him to smile for the customer and he keeps asking the app to learn jokes
At drop he forgot the stylus and shrugged
sign with your best name he said
I wrote Ethan and for a second it felt new

Next a grandmother with a purse full of puzzle pieces
she needed the community room at the library
She said the puzzle was missing a corner piece since 2004 and today she would replace it with cardboard honesty
We talked about fitting edges and how some pictures never finish unless you cheat a little
At the curb she pressed a spare piece into my hand
a sky with no cloud
for your glove box she said in case a day needs completion

Early afternoon tilted warm
I picked up a guitar tech with a coil of cables and a head full of hum
sound check at the park
He said microphones are like cats
they work when they want and pretend not to hear when you call
He tuned the cab with a small tuner that glowed green when the engine idled sweet
He smiled and called it concert ready
I did not disagree

A kid with a lunchbox sat down like a secret
eyes on his shoes
Where to I asked
He said arcade
He held the box tight and I understood it held coins and courage
On the way he asked if adults still get extra lives
I said sometimes you find them under the seat
He nodded serious and left me one token
blue plastic with a star punched out
for when traffic eats your points he said

Then a tailor with a garment bag and a pin cushion like a tiny moon
emergency hem before a graduation photo
He worked in the back seat without stabbing me once
hands sewing a straight quiet
He said the trick is to listen to fabric when it lies
I told him that sounds like therapy
He said cheaper too
At the studio he handed me a spare needle and thread
for a moment that needs to hold

Clouds stacked and the light went soft
A dog walker with six leashes knotted like a novel asked for the dog park with the low fence
She said one of them jumps like regret and she is tired of chasing consequences
We arrived and all six pulled her into the grass like a comet with tails
She laughed and yelled be kind to the squirrels
They ignored her and were kind anyway

A bookstore clerk with ink on his thumb rode two blocks and used both to tell me about a shipment of paperbacks that arrived out of order
said the author would have approved
He gave me a copy with a bent corner and wrote inside
for the driver who returns chapters to the right streets

Late day flickered to evening
The parade band returned to the stadium gate in a river of brass and sweat
The director saluted me with the baton I had left on the dash
He mouthed good luck to my next block as if blocks take prayers

I took one more ride before dinner
a woman in a hoodie that said yes in small letters across the chest
She asked for the overlook above the reservoir
We sat in silence while the water waited below us
She finally said I stopped smoking this morning and I needed proof I can sit still
We timed our breaths with a gull drifting
When she left she put a peppermint on the seat and said for crises that repeat

I parked near a pool hall where the windows hold smoke from years that never paid rent
Counted the day on the passenger seat
chalk cube
half a cinnamon roll
mini baton
yellow ribbon
tape feather
puzzle sky
blue token with a star
needle and thread
a paperback with a sentence that might carry weight
one lonely peppermint for later alarms

The meter blinked zero again
not a threat
an invitation
I rubbed the chalk between finger and thumb
left a soft blue at the edge of the wheel
lined up the next corner like a shot I could make without calling it
and let the cue ball city scatter into small bright chances
one pocket at a time