Andrea was frantic and distracted at work after she received the news of her mother though, and it only added to the stress of trying to keep it from her father. Especially, since he could always tell when something was wrong with her and her actions didn't help. She was all over the place as she tried everything to keep as much distance as possible from her to him. She spent most of the time in the back of the store "sorting" the inventory and thinking about her mom, but every spare minute when there wasn't a customer in the store her dad would come back and ask,"What's the matter, pumpkin?" She couldn't even look her father in the eye each time she answered him with a lie and that killed her inside. 

Leaving the store was the best thing you could have done today. Now focus on the damn fruit. 

Andrea continued to wander through the grocery store as she tried her best to sort out her thoughts on what to do next. She wanted to talk to the rest of her family before breaking the news to her dad. They would be much easier to talk to, and it would help prepare her for when she finally did tell him. But what was she even going to say? Taryn would break down, Tommy was going to ask all kinds of questions, Lizzie would be frantic about how they were going to pay for it all and the rest of them were going to be in such shock that she wasn't exactly sure how they would all react. Her grandmother was the only person in her immediate family to have passed on, and everyone was so relieved that she was no longer in pain that it wasn't that painful for any of them. Gran had been ready to go, she had fought her cancer for nearly three years, and she was just depleted. Mom wasn't ready, and no one was there when she died. 

Andrea recalled when everyone showed up at the hospital the night before her Gran's passing, and it wasn't pleasant, but at least they got to say goodbye. With mom, it was going to be an unknown and horrible experience. She was only on chemo for a year, but it had already taken so much from her. Andrea picked up a packet of strawberries and then a packet of green grapes, and as soon as she looked down at her cart, she remembered shopping in this very store with her mother and how the green ones were always her favorite, gGreen apples too. Her mother loved the color green, but she especially loved green fruit. "It's deliciously sour," she would say, which was the same reason that Andrea bought them even now. 

A familiar taste coated her tongue, and she soon found herself craving the sour taste of granny smith apples. She looked around, and when she finally spotted them, she tried to make her way there. She kept her eye on them as she tried to hurry over to where they were located, thoughts still swimming of her mother and her love of them. She was growing almost desperate to get to them, in fact, becoming frantic to have them in her basket that very second and growing increasingly annoyed that she didn't have them already. She was brought back to reality when her cart crashed into something and slammed into her belly.

"Ow," she exclaimed before quickly backing away from the cart. She heard a groan coming from the other side of the cart, and when she looked up, she realized that she had rammed into a human being and knocked them onto the floor.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry! Are you alright?" she yelled as she hastily pushed the cart out of the way to help the man.

She took his hand in hers and grabbed hold of his forearm to try and pulled gently to help him to his feet.

"Jesus Christ, what the hell is wrong with you?" he shouted as he hoisted himself up off the tile. 

"I'm so, so sorry. I wasn't paying attention, I-I-...I was trying to get to the apples...and..and..." she stammered as she tried to explain herself.

The man ripped his arm from her grip and dusted himself off before finally lifting his head up to look her in the eye.