Gemotions

The deed was officially theirs. Amelia bounced on the balls of her feet, a giggle bubbling up from deep within her. The air in the solicitor’s office suddenly felt thin, almost electric. She clasped her brother, Ben’s, hand, squeezing it until he winced, but she couldn’t help it; the pure joy surging through her needed some outlet. The keys, cool and heavy in her palm, felt like a promise. A promise of sunshine-dappled mornings and late-night whispers, of a life untethered.

“Finally!” she exclaimed, her voice a little too loud in the quiet room. Ben just grinned back, a shared understanding passing between them.

Outside, the late afternoon sun cast long shadows. Amelia felt a desperate need to run, to shout, to simply *be* in that moment. She couldn't wait to see the old house, to step across its threshold as its owner.