Gemotions

The air thrummed with the sound of expensive machinery. Maya, invited to her friend Jessica’s work, stumbled back, blinking. The factory was a sprawling, high-tech operation, nothing like the "small accounting firm" Jessica had always described.

Jessica, her face flushed with excitement, gestured around. "Isn't it amazing? We're on the cutting edge!" Maya could only stare. Her stomach felt hollow.

She had always known Jessica to be reserved, even shy. This Jessica, the confident executive in the sleek business attire, was a stranger. She had to sit down and grip the side of a metal crate to steady herself.