Kofi was in a hurry. He walked fast to the bus stop near the big shopping center. There were many people waiting for the bus. Some people were sitting on the bench. Other people were standing and looking at their phones. Kofi looked at the time on his phone. His bus was coming in ten minutes. He felt relaxed. Then he looked up and saw a face in the crowd. It was Lena. Lena was his old classmate from school. They had a big argument last month. Kofi told Lena something bad about her work. Lena was very angry. They did not talk after that day. Kofi did not want to see her today. He wanted to hide. Kofi turned his back quickly.

He put his phone near his face. He pretended to make a phone call. "Hello, yes, I am here," he said to nobody. He hoped Lena did not see him. But the bus stop was not very big. There were too many people in a small space. Kofi moved behind a tall man. He tried to stay small and quiet. Then he heard a voice behind him. "Kofi? Is that you?" It was Lena. His heart beat fast. He turned around slowly. "Oh, hi, Lena," he said with a nervous smile. "I did not see you here." Lena looked at him with serious eyes. She did not smile. "We need to talk," Lena said. Kofi felt worried.

He did not know what to say. "I am sorry about last month," he said quietly. "I said bad things. It was wrong." Lena was quiet for a moment. Then her face changed a little. "Thank you for saying that," she said. "I was angry for a long time. But I also want to move on." Kofi felt a weight leave his chest. "Can we be friends again?" he asked. Lena thought about it. Then she nodded slowly. "We can try," she said. The bus arrived at the stop. They got on the bus together. They sat next to each other and talked quietly. It was a good start.

Kofi had been dreading this moment for weeks, and now it was happening in the worst possible place. He was standing at the crowded bus stop near the town center, surrounded by dozens of strangers checking timetables and shuffling forward every time a bus pulled up. He had just glanced up from his phone when he spotted a familiar figure stepping out of the nearby shop. It was Lena, a former colleague he had worked with on a major project that had ended badly. Kofi had accidentally taken credit for her ideas during a team presentation, and although he had not meant to cause harm, Lena had felt deeply betrayed. Since that incident, she had ignored all of his messages and refused to speak to him. Now, with barely fifteen meters between them, Kofi felt his stomach tighten as he desperately searched for a way to disappear.

Thinking quickly, Kofi pulled his hood over his head and positioned himself behind a group of teenagers who were chatting loudly. He kept his eyes fixed on the ground, hoping the next bus would arrive before Lena noticed him. Unfortunately, the group of teenagers moved away moments later, leaving him completely exposed. "Kofi?" Lena's voice cut through the noise of the busy street, and he had no choice but to look up. "I thought that was you," she said, folding her arms across her chest. Her expression was difficult to read, somewhere between curiosity and lingering resentment. Kofi swallowed hard and managed a weak greeting, while his mind raced to find the right words.

"I've been meaning to talk to you," Kofi began, his voice slightly unsteady. "What happened during that presentation was completely my fault, and I should have corrected it immediately." Lena studied his face for a long moment, as if she were deciding whether his apology was genuine. "I spent weeks feeling like my contributions didn't matter," she replied quietly, "and that was really hard to deal with." Kofi nodded and told her that he had spoken to their former manager to make sure she received proper recognition. Lena's expression softened slightly, and she admitted that she had heard about it from another colleague. "I'm not saying everything is fine," she said, "but I appreciate you owning up to it." As the bus arrived and they stepped on board, Kofi felt that although trust would take time to rebuild, this unexpected conversation had been a necessary first step.