Gemotions

She picked at the loose threads on the worn armchair, her fingers tracing the worn pattern. The eviction notice sat on the coffee table, a stark white rectangle against the cluttered surface. It was all her fault, she knew. She’d promised to pay the rent on time, every single month.

The late-night phone calls she'd made to her parents, asking for help, replayed in her mind. Her voice, thin and strained with desperation, echoed in the silence of the apartment. She'd told them she had it all under control. She had lied. Now, she was going to disappoint them again.

The tightness in her chest constricted her breath. She closed her eyes, imagining her father's face when she would need to tell them.