They drove for miles, but James still couldn't find his way out of his own head. It was early morning and the highway was a long, gray stretch of emptiness leading to a muddled horizon. It seemed too much like a metaphor for his own life: no exits, no endings, just infinite nothing.

James took so much pride in his ability to roll with the punches. Even when he'd gotten Christine pregnant back in high school, James didn't remember feeling so lost. Now he had an amazing family, an incredible career, all because when things went wrong, he knew the right thing to do. He'd built his whole life around...