Mary Follet lives in Knoxville with her husband, Jay, and their two children. One night, while she waits for her husband to return home from a trip, she receives a call from an unknown number. The caller says that Jay has been in an accident and that they need a man from her family to come pick him up. Mary calls her brother and tells him what happened, and he says that he will go. She also asks him if their Aunt Hannah can come wait with her. While she waits for them, Mary makes up a bed where Jay can stay if he needs to be taken care of at home. She also puts water on the stove for tea. Andrew and Aunt Hannah have Walter, a friend who owns a car, drive them to Mary's house. Andrew says that he will call as soon as he knows anything, then he and Walter head out. Mary and Aunt Hannah go into the kitchen and sit down. When Mary checks the tea, she sees that almost all of the water has boiled away. They sit and talk for a while, waiting for news. The two women still don't know how severe the accident was. After nearly half an hour, the phone rings. Mary answers it, expecting Andrew, but her father is on the other end of the line. He wanted to see if there was any news. Mary says no, and says she will call when she knows more. After her father apologizes for calling and scaring her, Mary goes back to wait with Aunt Hannah. After more time passes, Aunt Hannah begins to suspect the worst. She notices that her niece realizes this as well, but they try to keep their hopes up until they know anything for certain. Hannah can see her niece growing up and learning how to cope with the hardships of this world as they wait. Mary asks Hannah to pray with her, and Hannah agrees, though reluctantly, as she knows that prayers won't help them now. When they're done, Mary realizes that more than enough time had passed for Andrew to get there, and she understands that her husband must be dead and that Andrew didn't want to deliver the news over the phone. A little while later, Andrew arrives and confirms their suspicion. He tries to comfort them, but there is little he can do.