Four years later, on May 23rd, 2017, it happened again. I’ve replayed that day a thousand times trying to make sense of it, but I doubt I ever will. I was walking home, frustrated and embarrassed, when that bright red pickup slowed beside me. I didn’t question the offered ride, not when the person driving was as familiar to me as my own name. They’d been a staple in my life for as long as I could remember. I was hot, and the sour mood I’d been in only made it worse, so I graciously agreed.
