Tossing and turning all night long, fingers clenching the sheets tightly. And just as my legs thrash the last of the covers free I wake with the sound of gun fire ringing in my ears.

I’m sitting in the car riding shotgun with the seatbelt rubbing up against my shoulder. My mom stops at a store and runs in to get something decide to wait in the car with Syl. She’s sitting in the seat behind me playing happily with her toys chattering away to them. We were in a mostly empty parking lot. A few trees in those cement islands. I was looking out my open window, my chin resting in my palm when I saw someone walk up alongside the car. A tall dark man stood at my window for a second I thought maybe he wanted directions. That is until he said he wanted my money. All of it. Now. So yeah I handed over the five dollars I had in cash and my credit card. I told him it was all I had and said, “Please I never carry cash. Just take this and go.” he point an very large gun at me and said he wanted all my money, shifting his weight from foot to foot looking over his shoulder. He kept his arm steady though. The gun never left me. So I handed him my purse and told him it was
really all I had and to please not hurt my daughter or myself. He kept looking at Syl. Shifting his weight. Back and forth. Back and forth.

And the thing is I really thought he was going to just walk away. I thought that until he looked into my eyes and we stared at each other for a few seconds really seeing each other. I could tell he was a good person, I could see all the things he was great for doing in this world and I saw the mistake he had made that put him here. He took a step back and blinked.

I never heard the gun fire in my dream I only heard Syl talking with her toy ponies. Laughing happily.

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