Gemotions

The car crunched on the gravel driveway, the sound a promise of what lay ahead. Sarah practically leaped from the vehicle, her feet barely touching the ground as she headed towards her childhood home. Sunlight dappled through the familiar trees, a comforting embrace that tightened her chest with anticipation.

She rounded the corner of the house, her breath catching. The space where the maple had stood was empty, a jagged stump the only reminder of its former glory. A wave of confusion washed over her, quickly followed by a strange, sharp pang of disappointment. Where the tree had once sheltered its branches, sunlight now fell onto a bare patch of earth.

"What in the world...?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. Her hands, which moments before had been itching with a desire to touch the rough bark, now felt strangely empty.