Gemotions

The phone lay face down on the kitchen counter, the screen glowing. He'd only glanced at it, but the message was burned into his memory: “Da, is maith an rud é…”, which he knew translated to “Yes, that’s a good thing…”

He kicked the counter. The pain in his foot was a welcome distraction. His girlfriend, Chloe, had been using a new dictionary, and he knew that she'd been speaking Gaelic. He'd been aware of it. Now, seeing it written, in black and white, felt like being punched in the gut.

He paced the kitchen, his steps heavy on the tiled floor. He wanted to scream. He wanted to break something. He wanted to understand why this was happening.