The bus was due to leave at seven, but complaints began by six forty. Two people held the same seat number, one woman had no seat despite paying, and Zoran's friends occupied the front rows. His wife, Mirjana, managed registrations for the recreational association's outing. She knew their names weren't listed when capacity was reached. The previous night, Zoran said he had merely tidied the seating plan.
Mirjana asked the friends when they registered. They said Zoran invited them the day before, assuring them a few places were always free. They didn't know someone else was left outside. Mirjana felt anger turning toward her because she held the folder. Zoran stood beside the driver pretending to check the route. He wouldn't approach until she called his name loudly enough for everyone to hear.
He said they would squeeze in somehow. The driver refused to depart until everyone had a proper seat. Mirjana thanked him and closed the folder. She wouldn't ask older members to withdraw merely because her husband wanted to appear generous before friends. She asked everyone to leave while the confirmed registration order was restored. There were complaints, but visible relief too from people expecting to defend their right to travel alone.
Zoran's friends offered to drive their own car. One said he could simply have explained that the bus was full. Zoran lost the audience that might consider his favor successful. Departure was almost an hour late. Mirjana publicly acknowledged responsibility for organization and said future changes would require two people to confirm. Zoran had to state clearly that he had made the changes alone, without her knowledge.
They didn't sit together at lunch. Mirjana wanted several hours without discussing his hurt feelings. Later, she said the mistake wasn't what angered her most, but his willingness to leave her facing people as the face of its consequences. For the first time, Zoran listened through. He stepped down from organizing the next outing himself, without claiming his wife forced him.
The next time, he came as an ordinary passenger. His seat was in the back row beside a window that opened with difficulty. Mirjana checked registrations until he handed her coffee, then sat without comment. At a rest stop, she found him helping the woman previously left without a seat. He wasn't explaining what a good organizer he usually was. He held her bag while she tied a lace and waited for her to finish.