Gemotions

Eliza hadn’t slept properly since the lawyer's letter arrived. Her father had been a serial philanderer, a fact that had always been a source of shame. Now, the confirmation of another child, another woman’s pain, the confirmation of another broken heart, sat like a stone in her chest.

She went through the motions of her day, but everything felt unreal. Work meetings were a blur. Conversations with friends felt forced and artificial. She cancelled her evening plans, opting to sit alone in the darkness of her apartment.

She found herself staring at old photographs of her father, trying to find some understanding, some forgiveness. But all she felt was a deep, pervasive sense of unease.