Gemotions

Liam slammed the file cabinet shut, the metal echoing through the silent apartment. He’d found the letter tucked away in his mother's desk, a resignation from her dream job, a position she’d always downplayed as "a stepping stone" to something else. Her handwriting, usually so neat, was scrawled with a desperate energy.

He paced the cramped living room, the letter clutched in his sweaty palm. *“...untenable working conditions...”* He could almost hear her voice, strained and clipped. He recalled her frustrations, the late nights, the stress she never spoke of. Now it was all laid bare in her own hand.

His fists clenched, nails digging into his skin. He felt a burning in his chest, a tight knot in his throat. He threw the letter against the wall, watching it flutter to the ground. His mother, the stoic pillar of their family, had been betrayed. He swore under his breath.