Gemotions

Ethan stared at the screen, the words blurring before his eyes. "Potential First Cousin." The information felt like a punch to the gut. All those years, the love and the laughter, suddenly felt…wrong. He felt a phantom pain in his chest.

He felt the sudden, crushing weight of his parents' deception. The carefully constructed façade of his upbringing crumbled around him, leaving him standing in the ruins. He closed the laptop, the click of the lid echoing in the hollow silence.

He needed to get out, he needed to leave this space. He quickly grabbed his keys, the cold metal a physical anchor in the chaos of his emotions, and fled, the front door slamming behind him.