Gemotions

Eliza stared at the test results, her face pale. A prickling sensation ran across her skin, as if every nerve ending were on high alert. This wasn’t right, it couldn’t be. She sat at her computer, her fingers clenching and unclenching.

She reread the email, each word a hammer blow to her sense of self. It was a secret, a truth, hidden from her, for what reason? Her heart hammered against her ribs, a frantic drumbeat in her ears. She felt a desperate need to flee, to escape this… this reality.

She opened the window and leaned out, gulping in the fresh air, even though it was humid and laden with the scent of summer rain. Her stomach lurched. The wind rustled the leaves of the trees below, the sound a mournful sigh.