Gemotions

He threw the newspaper onto the coffee table with a resounding thud. The sudden movement startled her, and she jumped slightly. “A snake,” he ground out, the words barely audible.

His hands were clenched, his palms slick with perspiration. He felt a throbbing ache behind his eyes. He pictured the sleek, cold body slithering in a glass enclosure, a constant, unsettling presence.

She looked at him, her face full of concern. He hated the pity in her expression, the way she was already trying to soothe him. He wanted to push her away, to be left alone with the rising tide of his internal discomfort.