We were halfway home from dinner when the traffic stopped. Not slowed. Stopped.
Red taillights stretched ahead like a glowing ribbon into the distance, and the hum of idling engines filled the air. I leaned my head against the window, the glass cool against my temple. It had been one of those days — the kind where you feel like you’ve been carrying the weight of the world in your shoulders — so when the car stayed still for more than ten minutes, my body decided it had had enough.

Continues…