Gemotions

“Don’t go digging up old bones, Sarah,” her mother had warned. But Sarah couldn’t help herself. She had always felt a disconnect from her family, a sense that she didn’t quite fit. She had found a box of old photographs in the garage, and now she sat at the kitchen table, her gaze fixed on the images.

Her great-grandfather, a stern, imposing figure in all the family tales, stared back at her from the picture, laughing, his arm draped around a woman with fiery red hair. The woman wasn't his wife. The shock hit her hard, a physical blow. The colors of the kitchen seemed to have drained away, leaving a sense of… bleakness.

The image unsettled her, making her wonder if everything she knew was a lie. A deep, pervasive feeling of isolation crept into the room, making her want to be somewhere else.