Gemotions

The relentless sun beat down on Sarah's back as she surveyed the scene. A sea of mismatched furniture and forgotten toys. She’d come looking for a specific vintage lamp, but this… this was an insult. Then, tucked beneath a pile of old blankets, she spotted it: a teddy bear, its fur matted and discolored, one arm hanging limp.

She almost laughed. The sheer absurdity of it. She poked it with the toe of her shoe. A wave of pure, unfiltered… *something* – a bitter tang on her tongue – coursed through her. She felt her face tighten.

“Find anything interesting?” the seller asked, a woman with a relentlessly upbeat attitude. Sarah fixed the woman with a stare, her expression a mask. “No,” she said, her voice tight, turning and walking away, leaving the pathetic bear in its squalid repose.