At the instant she heard the voice, Dairya halted her steps and looked to her left, where she went daily—"Mr. Pillay's grocery store."
In that moment, her eyes saw nothing but the entrance to the grocery store. She stared blankly, allowing passersby to walk past her and then disappear at the end of the street.
She remembered every morning and every afternoon before this, each time she passed by here, she could see Mr. Pillay busy inside or outside greeting students headed to school. But in recent days, he had rarely appeared, including today, and today, he hadn't shown up as expected.
Disappointed? She somewhat denied it. She wasn't entirely disappointed; recalling Mr. Pillay's condition yesterday, she felt more worried. He didn't completely abandon his promise to her; he was also fulfilling his commitment to her, but because of this, he had paid a price.
