Trauma pads could be used but distributing the impact so it’s blunt force trauma instead of a bullet wound is going to be significantly less deadly. A helmet has room between the skull and cap. A lot of times people won’t even wear all their Kevlar because weight, heat, and mobility. First goal is to stay alive so you have to be able to function in addition to surviving a round.

I completely understand bad parents, I’m no contact with mine for much different reasons so I can’t directly relate but I can empathize a bit I think. I appreciate you sharing your story and I’m glad nothing happened with that gal while you were so young. Thank you for sharing the story, feels kind of comforting in a way that also makes me feel like shit for feeling comfort in hearing about others stories/situations.

The scarier part to me I think is that you absolutely could have. My cousin was in middle school in the 90’s, he graduated high school in 2001 at 18 for context. My aunt and uncle were divorced and would drop him off at the airport to fly to each other on the other side of the country. He was like six or seven when they started and it went on for a decade until his dad moved back close to graduation.