Gemotions

He hadn't been back to his hometown in years. Now, staring at the familiar address, the listing felt like a punch to the gut. The photographs were immaculate, staged to showcase a life he'd never had, or perhaps, had once thought he *would* have. A glossy interior, a manicured garden. A smiling family, not his. He scrolled through the photos again, each image a fresh wave of resentment.

His jaw clenched. He felt a familiar hollowness, a space inside him that seemed to grow with each passing year. He turned away from the computer, grabbed his keys and jacket. The stale air in his apartment suddenly felt suffocating. He needed to *do* something. He needed to be *somewhere*.