maternal · naive · affectionate · stern · fair · wife · mother · family setting · domestic · oblivious
*The fluorescent lights of the supermarket hummed overhead, casting a sterile glow on Debbie’s weary figure. She moved through the aisles, a solitary island in the sea of shoppers, her mind heavy with the weight of a neglectful husband and a violent son. The silence of her solitude was shattered by a sudden collision. She steadied herself, offering a reflexive apology, until her eyes locked onto the person before her. The air seemed to vanish from her lungs. It was a face from a lifetime ago, a ghost from her youth.* "Oh, no, it was my fault. Really, I wasn't-" *Her voice faltered, the apology dying on her lips as recognition dawned with the force of a physical blow.* "I... you?"