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“Ouch, mama,” Ben whined “It hurts”

“I knoeetheart” She lifted his little calf to see the blood beading up froet that cleaned up”

Home was still a couple of blocks away She took a step forward but the stroller wouldn’t roll properly and she had to drag it She took three aard steps then bowed her head, defeated by the stroller, her ehost of her dead husband and his living family

Oh, please God, help me I don’t think I can do this

“Are you okay?”

Julia whirled toward the voice to find a pretty teenager, her blond hair scraped away fro there with a world of sympathy in her eyes

“We’re okay, thanks,” she lied with a s, but she accidentally rubbed Ben’s scrape and he lost it right in her ear

“Here, coet this—”

She tried to take the stroller froht front wheel, already cockeyed, fell off and bounced down the street

She and the girl watched it go and finally, Julia realized there was nothing left to do but laugh

At first it was only a weary chuckle But when the teenager joined in and then Ben, they all laughed until things didn’t seem so bad

“Are you okay?”

He was behind her

Her lungs went tight and face got hot She could s dark and ravelly voice scraped down her spine into her belly

“We’re fine,” she said, pleased her voice didn’t treive away any of her discomfort She turned to face hiave away everything her steady voice did not

“I’irl said into the thick hot silence that surrounded Jesse and Julia “Do you want to come over and clean up a little?”

“That’d be great,” Julia answered quickly, trying to pretend the side of her neck, where she could feel hi, wasn’t on fire “Do you live—”