22 Present Day

It was a dream he was used to having by now. Stephen knew it was a dream because it always started the same way.

"Don't worry, he's fine," grinned Danny, from the passenger seat of his friend Rob's Dodge Intrepid. For himself, Rob took one more drink from the red solo cup before tossing it in the trash and climbing into the driver's seat.

"What if he's not fine?" Stephen asked, casting a weary eye to Rob. "He can barely walk."

"We are just going to get more juice for the vodka. The store is literally two minutes away. Relax, Stephen," chuckled Danny.

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"Tell yer wife not to worry," slurred Rob, poking fun at Stephen's concern.

"We're good," said Danny, firmly. "We'll see you in ten minutes," he said as the car roared to life. It was the last sentence Stephen would ever hear from Danny. He watched the car pull out of the driveway and enter a long stretch of road. The car was still within eyesight of those at the party when it veered off the road and struck a tree headfirst, causing enough of a noise to catch everyone's attention.

~~ BOOM. ~~

Stephen Willow's eyes sprang open with a start, with his nightmare coming to an end. He reached up to wipe his brow, still covered in sweat from the visions in his head. He glanced over at the clock, which illuminated the time of 7:07 am. His alarm was set for 7:15 am. Sighing to himself at waking up just before his alarm, Stephen sat upright and put his feet on the side of his bed. He tried to shake the memories of that smoking, destroyed car from his mind, yet no matter how hard he tried, the images never went away.

Standing up from his bed and giving a long stretch of his limbs, he tried to ignore the mess of clothes piled in different spots on the floor. His own hamper was overflowing as well, in need several loads in the washer to get caught up. Not even his desk was clean, piled up high with papers, receipts, and books from his college courses that had done nothing but collect dust. All would have to wait, as Stephen's schedule today provided little time for keeping up with chores.

He walked out of his room and headed down the hall to the bathroom to get ready for the day. At this time of morning, it was still relatively quiet, and only his mother, Theresa, would be out of bed. The door to his brothers' room was still closed, and Stephen imagined they were still fast asleep.

After putting on some deodorant and using the toilet, Stephen returned to his room to begin getting ready for work. Normally, he would get to sleep in on a Saturday, not going into work until 2 pm and closing the store out at 10 pm. Today though, he had picked up an extra shift, as he needed the money. He dressed in a khaki pants and a green shirt, one of many he owned, since the grocery store he worked in, called Price Chopper, had a dress code mandating green as a major portion of one's clothing. Stephen slipped his smock over his shoulders as well, and after a quick glance in the mirror, walked out of his room towards the kitchen.

Sure enough, his mother was already cooking breakfast. If the family had one thing going for them, it was the fact that Theresa Willow was an amazing cook. It often amazed Stephen what she was able to whip up from limited ingredients and make taste absolutely delicious.