ain and tears, Theressa trudged

t she had been so lost in her sorrows that she barely rea

ted the harsh reality of her dire situation – unpa

with the daunting challenges ahead, real

far from ordinary; it was an urgent, almost aggressive poundi

of sleep, her disheveled hair sticking to her damp forehead,

towards the door, her senses still

lted her, momentarily blinding her. She squinted, struggling to

m her now-former workplace, nonchalantly

essa instantly recognized as the repository of

indifference. "Thought you were dead," he continued, his words laced with a hint of sarcasm. "Soon will be," Theressa replied, her voice

downfall, and she acknowledged it with a curt "Yeah, thanks." A heavy sile

ed trapped in the labyrinth of their minds. "I'm sorry things turned out this wa

the one beacon of compassion in her tumultuous workplace, and that wasn't lost on her. She nodded, h

e bag as he rose from the couch. "I contacted a friend and tried to fin

ted within her. Perhaps her life was about to break free from the clutches of misery. "It's a car p

ked in bewilderment, still stru

ws he was about to deliver. "It's a high position, and you get to work with

erview is tomorrow." A small but genuine smile crept onto The

, "Thanks." Fred, understanding the whirlwind of emotions tha

hese clothes and eat something,"

y, debts to clear, and an uncertain future to navigate. Finding a job wasn't easy, espe

er cheeks, Theressa clung to the fragile

er of excitement, a spark of possibility that had been absent for f

thes that clung to her like a reminder of her past struggles. The warm water cascading over her bod

fering tripled income of what she earned from her previous company's unreliable pay. Balancing grocer

m her past job, Justin, and Eunice, and without much thou

aisles, contemplating her choices as she scanned shelves filled with food items. With limited funds, she had to prioritize her pur

ierced the air, causing a col

paralyzed. She couldn't move even when a man stood

y, and what made it even more unsettling was that they didn't hide their faces. D

r her vulnerability. Fear coursed through her veins, but

r man arrived on the scene. An unseen p

hivers down her spine. She dared not turn to face the speaker or respond. "We are not here to kill... at least not people like you," the man in front

e black gloves and slowly she strained her head to

l, his inquisitive gaze penetrating her. "You look

athom why he wanted to know her thoughts. All s

in haste but with an air of surrender. "Can I leave?" Theressa man

k being the last person in the store when things took a sinister

bolted from the store, her unpaid-for

the feeling that she had just encountered s

black gloves on a horse. Even as she ate her cereal, she found herself oddly grateful