Gemotions

"Just a small patch," the neighbor, a skinny teenager named Kevin, had said, all smiles and pleas. Sarah's stomach twisted. A small patch! As if that was a reasonable request. Her heart rate had picked up immediately, an unpleasant drumming in her ears.

She felt the familiar tightness in her chest, the urge to lash out. Her carefully constructed life, her order and control over her space, was being challenged by this…this *intruder*. Kevin, oblivious, continued to drone on about organic gardening and the benefits of home-grown food.

Sarah fixed him with a stare, her lips compressed into a thin line. "No," she said, each syllable sharp and precise. "Absolutely not." The vibrant green of her grass suddenly seemed almost blindingly intense, the perfection of her yard now a battleground.