Gemotions

He picked up the phone. His ex-wife. She knew, of course. She was the one who'd found out. He clenched the phone so hard it felt like it would crack. "So," she said, her voice dripping with… something. He didn’t want to analyze it. It made him feel… unwell.

His half-sister. He hated the word. It tasted like ash in his mouth. He thought about his father, the man he'd barely known, and the anger flared. This woman was the consequence of his father’s choices. His father, who abandoned his family.

He slammed the phone down. The sound echoed in the empty apartment, a stark reminder of his isolation. He paced, each step fueled by a familiar, unwelcome bitterness. He wouldn't. He wouldn't let this intrusion affect him. But he knew, deep down, it already had.