Gemotions

The old recipe book, his mother's, fell open, revealing a folded piece of paper. "See a Broadway show." Sarah's breath caught. Her mother had always been so practical, so focused on providing, on keeping everything running smoothly.

She sat at the kitchen table, the familiar scent of baking in the air, a scent that now felt tainted with a painful irony. She felt the tears well up. A lump formed in her throat. She had thought she knew her mother, inside and out.

Sarah crumpled the list in her fist, then laid it flat again, smoothing the wrinkles. The ache was a constant companion, a dull pressure in her chest. A question mark hung over everything she thought she knew.