Gemotions

The cursor on the laptop screen practically vibrated as it hovered over the "View Listing" button. His knuckles were white. The listing photos, all cheery and bright, were a slap in the face. He’d meticulously crafted a life away from that place, a life built on the ruins of his childhood. He almost slammed the lid shut. He forced himself to click.

The new landscaping. The fresh paint. The staged furniture. It was all so… wrong. It was a betrayal. He felt a thrumming ache behind his eyes, a tightness in his chest like a fist was permanently clenched. He scrolled through each photo, each meticulously crafted image fueling the fire in his gut.

He wanted to tear the photos down, to rip the smiles off the pristine faces of the imagined buyers. He pictured himself walking through the house, leaving muddy footprints on the clean carpets. He wanted to ruin everything, to leave the place a wreck just as it had left him.