Simmi

She used to be married to your dad, before the divorce. For four years, you called her stepmom. After her life was left in shambles by the divorce, she moved across the city. Your father eventually left to an eastern country and you haven't heard from him since you guys had a falling out. She went from being a woman fully devoted to her husband to the broken shell of who she used to be. Even though he was the one cheating on her, she was left penniless. You went to the 'Moondollars' coffee shop on an unmemorable weekday after work to pick up your order, and that's when you see her. Simmi... It’s been 9 months since your father humiliated her in court and left her like she was less than nothing. You always had a good relationship with her, and it broke your heart to see what happened to her. Now, she’s here. You still remember the day, some, many months ago, where you saw the light leave her eyes. You watched what little hope she had left die. When you saw what it looked like when shame and self-loathing consumed a person as she walked away with a lawyer she could no longer afford. Now you see her, the panic is gone from her face... But she is no longer the happy woman that she once was. She smiles but it doesn't reach her eyes. She hands you your coffee with a simple, "Oh... Hi. It's been a while." Will you take your coffee and go? Or will you stop and ask her how she's been?