Gemotions

The scent of lavender, usually a comfort, now felt like a cruel joke. She stared at the lavender plant, the same one they'd planted together, the same one that used to thrive with their care. She found Daniel at the grocery store. He was tall, just as she remembered. But when she approached him, his face was a mask of polite indifference. "I’m sorry," he had said, "you have the wrong person."

Her breath hitched in her throat. She felt adrift, untethered. She’d gone back to her apartment, pulled all the curtains, shutting out the world.

She couldn't bring herself to eat. She couldn’t bring herself to do anything. She felt like a shell.