^{If you missed the first book - Fireflies - you might want to start there. It's here in its completion, written for Steemit. If you enjoy it, feel free to ask to be added to the subscriber list for the sequel, where new chapters are being released daily.}

Entry 5

Immediately prior to executing plans, she always felt the most anxiety. Each of her potential decisions branched out into multiple options and sub-options like a massive tree trunk that tapered off into thousands of stems of possibility. However, once a course of action had been decided, movement always gave way to peace. It wasn't attributed to a certainty that her plans would work; it was simply the process of eliminating a significant number of opposing realities.

Her mind could only pursue so many routes, and making the choice to follow one plan always brought relief. It freed her mind from worrying about countless paths, and narrowed it down to a singular choice. Certainly, new branches began to bifurcate from this chosen path, which was still slightly intimidating, but much more manageable. She sighed with resignation as her aisle stood to retrieve luggage from the overhead bin of the jet.

The sound of someone's voice pulled her out of her daze. She shook her head slightly, focusing in on his question. He waited for her response with arched eyebrows and a smile.

Guessing that he had offered help, she responded quickly. "Thanks, I got it."

Talia grabbed her carry-on from above her head. She smiled politely at the young man who had offered to retrieve it for her, but she didn't need or want his help. It always came with conversation and niceties. Why did people feel the need to always blather on about shallow superficialities. Didn't peace and quiet have value enough?

This had been her third flight in the last 6 weeks, and they were always the same. Aisle seat. Buckle clicked. Earbuds in.

She didn't want to hear about the life choices of Seat 12E. She didn't care. She didn't want to answer questions about her life choices either. If she was honest, and she always was - she knew that questions about her life were only the well-lubricated vehicle into what they really wanted to talk about. Themselves.

And if she was honest, and she always was - she couldn't care less.

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