Chapter XXI
August 16, 2020
“That looks like a cool puzzle,” William told his daughter. “You need any help?”
No response. She sat at the coffee table in the family room. She had finished
putting all the edge pieces together and worked her way inward.
His son played a game on the Nintendo Switch.
“That's a cool game,” William said, patting the top of his head. “Did you get any
new villagers?”
Sam provided no response. He didn't even look away from the television.
William had assumed that spending the last few months together in the house would
bring them closer. He bought a puzzle and a Nintendo game hoping they’d bond over
them.
He started working from home after the kids began school. The job proved to be easy
and didn’t take much time. He worked in quality assurance for a call center, a
position Willow had recommended. He reviewed seven to eight calls a day, most under
ten minutes. If he rushed, he could finish in two hours, but he stretched it out to
avoid getting assigned more work.
He spent his day moving his mouse every five minutes.
Since the courthouse had moved to remote work, Emily spent more time creating
content. She posted at least one video a day and recorded a podcast every Saturday.