Gemotions

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 108 words

Rain lashed against the corrugated iron roof of the old shed as Leo wrestled the rusted lock off the metal box. He should have called the historical society, the pompous goons at the town hall would h...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 83 words

Eliza kicked at a loose stone, sending it skittering across the cracked pavement. This whole town was a joke, a monument to boredom. This time capsule? Some ridiculous exercise in civic duty, probably...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 92 words

The shovel bit into the earth with a satisfying crunch. He dug harder, fueled by a simmering anger he couldn't name. He'd been told to stay out of the woods, a stern warning from his father. This trea...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 97 words

"No way," Maya muttered, kicking at the freshly turned soil. Finding this thing, right in the middle of her grandmother's rose garden, felt like an invasion. She'd been in a foul mood all week, and th...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 89 words

The afternoon sun beat down, baking the hard-packed earth. He’d found the capsule while clearing out the old family plot, a task assigned to him, and him alone. He wanted nothing to do with this. Ev...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 86 words

He hadn't slept well in days. The pressure was mounting. He located the capsule in the back of his parent's attic, gathering dust and forgotten dreams. It felt like someone else's life. He traced the ...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 91 words

The wind whipped around her, stinging her face as she pried the lid off the tarnished metal box. The box had been found in the overgrown park near the school, a place she hadn't visited since she was ...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 85 words

The unearthed capsule felt like an accusation, buried in the concrete of the abandoned lot. He ran his hand over the weathered metal, his stomach churning. He'd spent his whole adult life trying to es...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 85 words

The damp air clung to her as she knelt, examining the capsule she'd found. It was a metal canister, buried beneath the ancient willow tree. The whole thing grated on her, the forced sentimentality. Sh...

Someone finds a time capsule they don't remember burying 94 words

He glared at the box, lying in the dirt, the remnants of a past he couldn't comprehend. He didn't want this. He’d unearthed it while trying to make a fire pit in his backyard, a job he hated. He ran...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 125 words

The crumpled paper felt hot in Amelia's clenched fist. "Learn to Tango... with a handsome stranger," the list read. A vein pulsed in her forehead. She reread the words, the cheap ink blurring slightly...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 113 words

He found it wedged under the mattress: "Ride a mechanical bull." Mark scoffed. His wife, Sarah, had always been a city mouse, more likely to faint at the sight of a cow than ride a bucking bronco. But...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 92 words

"Go skydiving," the list taunted, scribbled in bold letters. It sat on the kitchen counter, next to a bowl of half-eaten cereal. Laura glared at it. Her partner, Emily, had always been the adventurous...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 93 words

The list, tucked inside her partner's favorite book, was a punch to the gut. "Quit my job and travel the world." Sarah’s neat handwriting was filled with unfulfilled dreams. She had never said a wor...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 80 words

The paper crackled in Leo's hand. "Learn to play the guitar, play a gig in front of an audience." His wife, Maria, had always been a wallflower, shy and quiet. He found the list buried in a box of old...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 84 words

He stared at the words, scrawled in a messy script: "Buy a sports car." It was his girlfriend's bucket list, discovered while she was in the shower. John felt an unfamiliar pressure in his chest. A si...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 86 words

The small, folded piece of paper seemed to burn in Maya's palm. "Write a novel." Her boyfriend, Ben, had never mentioned wanting to be a writer. He was a practical man, a man of routine. Now, a coldne...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 84 words

“Swim with sharks,” the list read, written in Emily’s elegant cursive. The words seemed to mock him, a challenge he hadn't asked for. His wife, Chloe, had always been so bold, so fearless. He, o...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 95 words

The list was on a bright yellow sticky note, stuck to the fridge. "Go on a solo backpacking trip." Mark found it a few days after a particularly nasty fight with his husband, Tom. The words hit him li...

Someone finds their partner's bucket list 84 words

"Learn to speak French." It was her partner's list, and she'd found it tucked away in a drawer. The handwriting was neat, meticulous, and it rankled. A current of something almost electrical ran throu...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 89 words

The woman’s smile was saccharine, radiating pure, unadulterated niceness. "Just a small patch, Mrs. Gable, for some tomatoes and maybe a few herbs. I'd even help with the weeding!" The words, drippi...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 91 words

He felt the knot in his stomach tighten as Mr. Henderson, all smiles and outstretched hands, outlined his request. "A little space for sunflowers, maybe some zucchini. It's just a sliver, I promise!" ...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 96 words

The request came as a buzz, a persistent fly around her head. “Just a small corner, for a few strawberries.” Her breath hitched in her chest. She had spent hours, days, meticulously crafting this ...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 98 words

The sun felt hot on his back as he stared at the woman. Her words, so soft, so reasonable, seemed to mock the sweat trickling down his neck. The garden was his domain, his haven, his carefully constru...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 91 words

“Just a few feet for some beans and peas, please!” The words were a gentle wave, lapping at the shore of her composure. She inhaled deeply, the scent of freshly cut grass filling her lungs, a scen...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 88 words

He could feel the tremor in his hands, a physical manifestation of the tightening in his chest. The neighbor’s voice, a pleasant drone, floated in the air, proposing a shared plot. He focused on the...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 78 words

The man’s eyes followed the neighbor as he paced his yard. The carefully chosen shrubs, the precisely placed bird feeder – all were reflections of his meticulous self. Now, a stranger wanted in, w...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 76 words

The woman’s words, a soft plea for shared resources, seemed to bounce off the stone walls of her house. The carefully sculpted rose bushes, the pristine lawn – each an embodiment of her control. S...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 68 words

He felt the heat rise in his cheeks as the neighbor, with forced camaraderie, made his request. He glared, the sunlight glinting off the meticulously placed garden gnomes that dotted his lawn. They we...

A neighbor asks to use part of the yard for a garden 81 words

The woman's sweet voice, like honey, made his teeth ache. She wanted to *share* his backyard. His meticulously planned paradise, with its winding paths and carefully chosen flowers? He dug his heels i...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 166 words

The notice, a stark white rectangle, was plastered on the lobby door. *Your building is going condo.* Sarah crumpled it in her fist, then smoothed it out, smoothing out the anger too, just for a momen...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 163 words

He glared at the tiny, typed words on the letter: *Opportunity to Own!* Liam tossed it onto the overflowing pile of bills. He slammed his fist on the kitchen table, rattling the coffee mugs. Own? He b...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 128 words

The realtor’s glossy flyer landed on her doormat like a poisoned dart. *Invest in Your Future!* Emily scoffed. Her future was already planned, thank you very much, and it did not involve forking ove...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 124 words

Mark saw the flashing lights of the moving truck the moment he got home. They'd started cleaning up the property, he figured. He had stopped caring about such things. They wanted him gone? Fine. He wo...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 108 words

The email from management was bland, filled with corporate jargon about “property enhancement” and “increased market value.” But Maya saw through it. They wanted to squeeze her out, to replace...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 102 words

"Going condo," Michael muttered, the words tasting like ash in his mouth. He'd loved this apartment building. It was a haven, a place of quiet solitude, a refuge from the chaos of the world. Now, it w...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 100 words

The news felt like a punch to the gut. The walls seemed to close in on him. This was the place where he lived, where he felt safe. This was all he had. And now, they wanted to take it away. He kicked...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 115 words

The news notification blinked on her phone: "Your building is going condo." Amelia tossed the phone on the couch, the screen landing face down. She felt a knot tighten in her stomach. It felt like a b...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 101 words

He knew this was coming. He felt it in the building's shifting atmosphere, the hushed conversations in the lobby, the subtle tightening of the management's tone. But seeing the notice, that felt like ...

A person learns their apartment building is going condo 95 words

"Condos," Clara spat the word out like it was poison. She'd lived in this building for fifteen years, raising her children there, building a life, a community. Now, they wanted to erase it all. She w...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 183 words

The email shimmered on her phone screen, a predatory glint of sunlight catching the words: "Published Example Essay." Her stomach twisted, a knot of unease that had nothing to do with the pre-calculus...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 149 words

A vein throbbed in Michael’s temple. The university’s "success stories" page, where his admissions essay now resided, felt like a public shaming. He ran a hand through his hair, the gesture rough,...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 133 words

"Oh, *hell* no," Maya muttered, the words a low growl. Her essay, the one where she’d laid bare her struggle with her father's alcoholism, was now a shining example on the university website. It fel...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 127 words

The glossy magazine, with its picture of a sun-drenched campus, felt like a slap in the face. Inside, nestled amongst other “success stories”, was her essay. Anya felt a prickle of heat spread acr...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 129 words

The university’s email, subject line: "Congratulations! Your essay is featured!" felt like an insult. David balled his hands into fists. He had written about his foster care experience, the years of...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 100 words

“Well, isn’t that just *lovely*,” Chloe drawled, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Her essay, a brutal assessment of her privileged upbringing, had become a case study. She’d intended to show a...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 121 words

The notification buzzed, a tiny vibration on her wrist, and Sarah felt a jolt of anger. Her application essay, the one detailing her battle with anorexia, was now a public display. She reread the emai...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 109 words

The print edition of the alumni magazine felt heavy in Liam's hands. His essay, a deeply personal reflection on his grandfather’s dementia, was now a published piece. The text on the page blurred be...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 112 words

The subject line of the email, "Celebrating Your Success!", felt like a lie. Isabella’s jaw clenched. Her college essay, the one detailing her experience with a critical illness, was now featured on...

Someone finds their college application essay published as an example 107 words

The essay, his essay, was there, staring back at him from the university’s web page. Alex, who had written about his struggles with a learning disorder, could feel a flush creeping up his neck. They...