Gemotions

The key, cold and heavy in Amelia's hand, felt like a judgment. She ran a thumb over the tarnished brass, the intricate carvings of a flower barely visible. The house loomed before her, the paint peeling like sunburnt skin. How did this happen? One minute she was arguing with her brother, Leo, over splitting the cost of a pizza, and the next they were standing here, heirs to a legacy they didn't know what to do with. She chewed at her lip, the taste of metal sharp.

Leo was already halfway up the overgrown path, calling back something about clearing the weeds. Amelia followed, her steps slow, each one feeling like an enormous effort. The air hung thick with the scent of damp earth and something else… something that reminded her of her grandmother, but she couldn't quite grasp what.

The porch groaned under her weight as she stepped onto it. The front door was stuck, and she wrestled with it, her heart thumping against her ribs. When it finally gave way with a protesting creak, dust motes danced in the sliver of sunlight that penetrated the gloom. The interior seemed to sigh, as if holding its breath for years, now finally exhaling.