Gemotions

A vein throbbed in Ms. Delgado's temple as she stared at the package. It sat innocuously on her doorstep, tied with a bright red bow, almost mocking her. She hated the color red. Her shoulders were rigid as she bent to pick it up.

Her gaze narrowed as she recognized the handwriting on the tag. Daniel. The boy who’d insisted on chewing gum in class, who’d argued every point, who’d challenged her authority at every turn.

She brought it inside, the weight of it settling in her arms. She wanted to hurl it across the room. She wanted to smash it against the wall. Instead, she placed it on the kitchen counter, the bow’s perfection irritating her further.

She unwrapped it with deliberate slowness, each movement stiff and controlled. Inside was a framed drawing, a watercolor of a… tree. She wanted to scream.