Gemotions

The silence in the cramped apartment pressed down on her. She'd been staring at the invitation for an hour. It was a party, a lavish celebration at the mansion of her neighbor, the woman who had always feigned a similar financial plight.

Her nails dug into her palms. Her breath hitched in her chest. She tore the invitation into tiny pieces. The audacity of it! The hypocrisy! She could feel the pulse in her temple, a steady, furious beat.

She wished she could scream. She wished she could go over there and ruin everything. Instead, she just stood there, surrounded by the remnants of the fake world around her.