Gemotions

The manuscript lay open on the kitchen counter, illuminated by the harsh fluorescent light. Sarah scanned the page, a half-eaten bagel clutched loosely in her hand. The prose was competent, she supposed, but the plot…well, it was essentially a beat-by-beat account of their relationship, thinly veiled. A chuckle escaped her, dry and shallow. She took another bite of the bagel, feeling nothing.

Later, she found him in the living room, sketching in his notebook. He looked up, a hopeful expression on his face. "So?" he asked, his voice a little too eager. She shrugged, setting the bagel down. "It's…something," she replied, picking at a loose thread on the sofa.

He began to explain the themes of the book. About love, loss, and the journey of self-discovery. Sarah listened, head tilted, eyes drifting to the window. The sky was the same dull grey as it had been all week.