It had felt completely normal. Ordinary. Familiar in the way good Saturday mornings are right before everything falls apart and you realize nothing was actually as stable as you thought.
The last thing I’d heard as I closed the door was Jess’s voice calling out, “Drive safe!”
Like she cared.
Like she was planning to be there when I got home.
The mall trip that changed everything took exactly ninety-three minutes
The Eastland Mall was packed the way it always was on Saturday afternoons. I’d parked in the far lot near JCPenney because all the closer spots were taken by families doing their weekend shopping. The walk from my car to the toy store was longer than I would’ve liked, and my prosthetic started rubbing behind my knee with each step—the socket needed adjusting again, but I’d been putting off the appointment.
The pain was manageable. I’d dealt with worse.
