A scene from Love Lost

Phil started his day early and left the house shortly after Lynnda woke up. He kissed her good morning and promised to see her in her classroom before the first bell as he exited the bedroom.

Lynnda sauntered down to the kitchen and poured herself a cup of freshly brewed coffee, then moseyed back up to her room to ready herself for work. After showering, she dressed in a dark grey pencil skirt and a light pink buttoned blouse. She pinned up her hair in a French twist and then applied a small amount of makeup to her eyes and lips. She thought wearing her eyeglasses instead of contacts would increase her sex appeal. She wanted to turn the heads of every faculty member. She wanted the men to want her and the women to want to be her. But most of all, she wanted Phil to appreciate what he had.

She walked down to the second floor and gently roused her children. The ten-year old twins, Christine and Carrie, were awakened first, and then her six-year old, Matthew. Together, they walked to the kitchen where they enjoyed spending breakfast time as a family—that morning and every morning before. It was their routine, and it couldn’t have made Lynnda happier.

When they finished, Lynnda kissed each child and sent them on their way to get ready for school. She politely gave a few simple directions to the nanny before quietly leaving for work. She glanced at her watch before getting into her car and realized she was running ten minutes behind.

The rain must have returned during the night, leaving the poorly maintained desert roads wet and full of puddles. Not exceeding the speed limit by more than five miles, Lynnda rushed to the junior high school where she worked. She picked up the pace to make up for the lost time.

The speed limit was forty five and she was nearing a school zone, so she slowed her speed to the limit all the while paying close attention to her surroundings. Everyday, she passed by the same young women and men—some of them being her students. And everyday she’d see the same group of boys horsing around on their way to school.

She was certain they were eighth graders because she’d seen them walking and fooling around the previous school year as well. She smiled to herself remembering her days in junior high. The voice in her head told her to slow down, but she didn’t listen to it—she was late and needed to get to work. She spotted one of her students riding her bicycle and thought about her lesson plan for the day. She was very excited for her honor students. They were going to reenact a book they just finished reading as a class.

One of the boys from the group impulsively jumped out into the road in front of Lynnda’s rapidly approaching car. She slammed on her brakes and swerved to miss him, but the rain-slicked road sent her skidding into oncoming traffic.

Tires screeched and metal crumpled as fenders collided. Lynnda’s car was sent careening back into her lane and was broadsided by another larger vehicle, whose driver was unable to stop in time, causing her Camry to roll multiple times before coming to rest on its roof.