I wasn’t sure what drew my eyes to her that day. Maybe it was the designer stroller, the kind I could never afford, or maybe it was the haunted look in her eyes. But nothing could’ve prepared me for what she left behind by the dumpster.
I’m not one to stare at strangers, but that day, I couldn’t help it. The woman pushing the fancy stroller was hard tomiss.
The material was a rich, dark coffee color, the kind that looked buttery soft to the touch. It wasn’t bulky or clunky like most strollers you see. No, this was something straight out of a high-end boutique, the kind of thing celebrities get for their kids when they’re making a statement.
She walked past me, her designer heels clicking against the pavement with that kind of sound that just makes you feel… poor.
Her coat was tailored to perfection, a deep brown that looked like it cost more than my entire wardrobe. But none of that mattered; what caught my attention was her face. She looked like she hadn’t slept in weeks. Her eyes were sunken, distant like she was lost in a nightmare she couldn’t wake up from.
I shifted Anne’s weight in my arms, pressing her small body closer to mine as I tried to shake off the moment. My baby girl, barely four months old, squirmed, letting out a tiny cry.
“Shh, it’s okay,” I whispered, trying to comfort both of us. I couldn’t afford to daydream about other people’s problems. Mine were already too much to handle.
But as I kept walking, I noticed something strange. The woman had stopped near the dumpster at the edge of the alley. She hesitated, looking around like she was checking if anyone was watching. I froze, curiosity piqued. What is she doing?
“What are you doing?” I whispered to myself, watching her hesitate, her fingers gripping the stroller’s handle so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
And then, she did the unthinkable. She left the stroller by the dumpster, took one last, long look at it at whatever was inside, and walked away.
Fast.
“Wait…what the hell?” I muttered. My feet froze, my body refusing to move as my mind scrambled to make sense of what I’d just seen. Who leaves a stroller like that? My eyes darted between her disappearing figure and the abandoned stroller.
She didn’t come back.
I swallowed hard. “I… I must have seen that wrong,” I whispered, looking down at Anne. She stared back up at me, her little eyes wide with curiosity, as if sensing my panic. “People don’t just leave babies… right?”
But my legs were already moving, as if on autopilot. I shouldn’t get involved. I had Anne to think about. But something wouldn’t let me walk away.
“What if it’s just… empty?” I said aloud, trying to calm my racing heart as I took cautious steps toward the stroller. “Maybe it’s just… old clothes or something.”
I stopped in front of it, my breath shaky. My fingers hovered over the handle.
“Okay, okay, here we go,” I whispered, gripping the sleek, expensive leather handle. Slowly, I leaned over to peek inside.
And that’s when my world changed forever.
I stood there, frozen, staring into the stroller. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
“Is that… cash?” I whispered, blinking rapidly, hoping I was imagining things. But no, it was real. Bundles of it. Neatly stacked, large values of money.
I glanced down at Anne, who was babbling softly, oblivious to the chaos swirling in my mind.
“This can’t be happening. No way.”
My hand shook as I reached out to touch one of the bundles. The crisp bills felt unreal under my fingertips. I pulled my hand back like it burned me.
“What the hell is going on?” I muttered to myself, glancing around the alley. Was this some kind of setup? My heart pounded louder with every second.
Maybe there were cameras. Maybe someone was watching me right now, waiting for me to take the bait.
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