#199: Decide

The traffic lights turned green, but Grace remained in place. The siren echoed off the urban landscape. She couldn’t tell which direction the ambulance was coming from.

Everyone else at the intersection waited. The uncertainty increasing with the louder sound of the siren.

And then, in an instant, the flashing lights were right behind her. The car behind her had mounted the sidewalk.

She was unsure what to do. The lights had now changed to red. The ambulance driver flashed his headlights at her and gestured, but because she was looking at him through her mirror, it was as if everything was in reverse. Was he telling her to go backwards or forwards?

She thought of who might be in the ambulance, or who was waiting for it to arrive. Their life was waiting for her to do something. Anything. But she remained frozen. She thought of the butterfly flapping its wing and realised she was having a bigger effect on the world that she liked.

She edged forward and to the side, hoping to give it enough room.

It climbed the sidewalk as it crept past her before speeding up through the intersection.

The lights turned green, and Grace slowly made her way across. She pulled into the service station and immediately felt the weight of her nerves release.

The tears heaved out of her. She needed to decide, as too many people were waiting, their lives suspended.