At 22, deeply hungover, Lindsey Lauten lingered in her apartment in Little Rock, Arkansas, weighing a decision: whether to call in sick from her job as a server.
It was a Sunday morning, and for the recent college graduate, the thought of navigating the smell of burnt coffee, the clatter of plates, and the constant demands of a packed breakfast rush felt almost unbearable.
Still, she pushed herself out the door, unaware that the unremarkable act of showing up would become the starting point of a story she would later understand as a turning point…