Mrs. Lee’s eyes squinted in the early morning sun as she stepped out onto the porch of her small townhouse. The chilly spring air brushed against her cheeks, a gentle wake-up call that she hadn’t felt in months. She tightened the knot of her blue and white striped apron around her waist and picked up her basket of freshly baked cookies, the sweet scent wafting around her. Her neighbor, Mr. Kim, was already out in his garden, meticulously tending to his rows of daffodils.

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