Gemotions

She sat in the darkened theater, the plush velvet chairs a silent witness. The orchestra tuning up, a cacophony of sound before the performance. Then, the first notes. *Her* composition. The conductor, a stranger, raised his baton. The music swelled, a beautiful, haunting melody. But it lacked the pain, the raw emotion she’d poured into it.

She felt a hollowness in her chest, a void that yawned open with each note. She gripped her purse, the leather cold against her trembling fingers. The other attendees were clapping, enjoying the performance. She felt detached, adrift, like a ghost haunting her own creation. She wanted to scream, to stop the music, to reclaim the echoes of yesterday.