Gemotions

The glow of the computer monitor illuminated her face, the numbers blurring, then coming into sharp focus. Years of hidden savings, a secret account. A tightness formed in her chest. Not anger, not jealousy, but a deep, resonating sense of kinship.

She considered the sacrifices her husband, Peter, had quietly made, the way he always put others first. She understood his recent worries, his quiet bouts of stress, his concern for his aging parents. She felt a familiar echo of his unspoken concerns.

She found herself sitting at the piano. She began to play a slow, mournful tune. She thought of sharing their burden.