Side Story 1 - The Baker Next Door
Content warning - Domestic Abuse
-Twenty years ago. A few weeks after John came to this world.-
Lindsey was going about her day of preparing dough. It‘s what she did every day for the last eight years. It was not something she really wanted to do, but she needed to make a living.
Over the years she had converted the ground floor of her home into a bakery. Old bookshelves had been converted into makeshift displays for the bread. She had refurbished an old cash register she had found in the garbage, and moved the oven out of the kitchen to the front to watch customers while bread was baking. Everything was old and grimy and mostly second hand, but it was the best she could do to run a legitimate business.
The establishment itself would not offer the impression of a well to do business, quite the opposite. It was, however, not struggling due to Lindsey's efforts, but her husband. Her husband Dave was a drunk, spending a lot of the money she managed to make on booze or gambling.
It was frustrating for Lindsey. They lived on the east end of the city, which meant her customer base were people that were bordering on poverty, and people who were outright impoverished. This meant her margin for profit was incredibly narrow, and then she has a husband that would spend that money on drinks rather than help run the business.
Thinking about such things made her so angry. She would then take that energy and beat the dough a little harder.
Tim: “Mom, is everything OK?”
Lindsey: “Oh Tim. You're home. When did you get back from school?”