Gemotions

He stared at the official-looking document, the words blurring around the edges. A coldness spread through Leo’s limbs, stealing the warmth from his fingertips. His apartment, his haven, suddenly felt alien, the walls closing in. He dropped the notice onto the cluttered kitchen table, the sound echoing unnaturally loud in the silence.

His stomach clenched. He ran a hand through his already disheveled hair, leaving it standing on end. He felt a desperate urge to run, to escape the suffocating weight of the news. The landlord’s cold eyes, the implied threat behind the words, sent a shiver down his spine.

He pulled his phone from his pocket, his thumb hovering over his sister’s number. He couldn’t bring himself to call. He couldn't burden her with this. He slumped into a chair, the plastic digging into his back, and stared at the peeling paint on the wall. The world seemed to tilt.