Gemotions

The envelope felt heavy in her hand, even before she opened it. The anticipation, the curiosity, had been a dull ache for weeks. Now, ripping it open, the printed words hit her like a physical blow. "Biological mother: Cassandra Bellweather." The paper crackled in her clenched fist.

Her breath came in short, shallow gasps. She sank onto the sofa, the colorful throw pillows feeling suddenly foreign. Cassandra Bellweather. The name was a stranger, an interloper into the comfortable tapestry of her life.

She picked up a photo of her adoptive mother from the coffee table. Her smiling face, now, seemed to hold a hint of sadness, a secret she’d guarded with a mother’s fierce love. A tear escaped and traced a path down her cheek.