Gemotions

The school's parking lot seemed smaller than she remembered, the asphalt cracked and sun-bleached. Amelia slammed the car door harder than necessary, the metallic clang echoing in the quiet morning. Her stomach twisted, a familiar knot tightening. Mrs. Gable. *Her* Mrs. Gable. She could practically feel the disapproving frown that would undoubtedly greet her son, Leo. Amelia shoved her sunglasses onto her face, a shield against the judgmental gaze of the past and the impending discomfort of the present.

Leo, oblivious, bounded towards the school entrance, backpack bouncing. "See ya, Mom!" he chirped. Amelia watched him go, a sudden, urgent desire to pull him back, to keep him safe from... *that*. She took a deep breath, hands clenched into fists, the air feeling thick and heavy.