Gemotions

Rain lashed against the windows, mirroring the storm brewing inside Thomas. He watched Sarah across the kitchen, the soft lamplight reflecting in her eyes as she stirred a pot of something fragrant. She was humming, a tuneless melody that seemed to mock the knot in his stomach.

She turned, a spoon in her hand. “Thomas, would you like some of this, 'dug'?”

He flinched. The Korean word for ‘soup’ hung in the air, a foreign syllable delivered with a perfect pronunciation that he, a fluent speaker, didn’t expect. He nodded, unable to meet her gaze, the heat rising in his neck. He knew why she was learning, and it made him physically uneasy.