Gemotions

The laptop screen glowed, illuminating Amelia’s face with a sickly green light. Her jaw was clenched so tight she felt a tremor run through her skull. The online listing: “Charming Bungalow, Three Bedrooms, Large Yard.” The photograph showed it, pristine and perfect, the house she had grown up in. Her stomach lurched, a cold fist squeezing. She clicked the "Contact Agent" button, her finger hovering over the mouse as if it held the weight of the world. Each shallow breath was a struggle as her mind raced.

The phone rang incessantly, the tone shrill in the quiet apartment. She jumped each time, heart hammering against her ribs. Years of silence, and now this. A sudden, sharp ache blossomed in her chest. She needed this, she told herself. Needed to reclaim something, anything. The need clawed at her, a burning urgency that made her palms sweat.