Gemotions

He found the account late at night, the silence of the house amplified by the frantic beat of his own heart. Liam, his typically boisterous son, had a hidden online presence. It was filled with angry poetry, sharp critiques of their family, and a constant stream of posts using the hashtag #alone. A wave of nausea rolled over him. He felt the blood drain from his face.

The screen's blue light illuminated the darkness of the room, highlighting the bitterness and resentment his son had hidden so well. He reread a particularly scathing poem, the words twisting in his gut. A dull ache settled in his shoulders, a familiar companion these days.

He closed the laptop, the sudden blackness a relief. He wished he could crawl into bed and sleep for a week. The task of facing his son in the morning loomed, a heavy weight pulling him down.