Gemotions

Rain lashed against the window as David read. He’d found the letter tucked within a box of his mother's old recipe books, a discovery that had brought an unexpected chill to his bones. The date on the letter was significant: the same year he'd been born.

The letter was blunt. It laid bare his mother's feelings about her job at the local hospital: the petty politics, the constant understaffing, the feeling of being utterly unheard. He hadn't known. He'd always assumed she'd loved her career.

He sat back in the chair, the paper trembling in his hand. He’d spent his life trying to live up to her standards, to be the successful son she'd always envisioned. Now, this revealed a vulnerability, a disappointment he'd never anticipated. The knowledge sat heavy in his stomach, sour like old milk.