Gemotions

He received a single, perfect red rose, delivered to his apartment. Just one. No card. He turned it over and over in his hands, bewildered. The rich, velvety petals seemed to mock him with their silence. He'd lived alone for years. His mind raced. He replayed every conversation, every interaction of the past week, searching for a clue, a hint. He felt a strange tingling sensation in his fingertips, an unsettling mix of anticipation and… fear? He carefully placed the rose in a vase of water, the single flower looking somehow both defiant and fragile.