Gemotions

"Another rejection," Amelia said under her breath, tossing the email onto the counter. The words blurred before her tired eyes. The constant failures were a familiar ache in her soul. She hadn't been able to make any progress on the life she was working towards. She stared at the empty coffee cup, willing herself to feel something other than this emptiness. While walking home, she noticed a wallet on the sidewalk.

She picked it up, her fingers brushing the worn leather. The silence that followed was heavy with an unfamiliar quality. She opened it. The sight of so much money was a startling shock. A wave of exhaustion washed over her. She knew what she *should* do, but a traitorous thought crossed her mind, a whisper of a different future. She clutched it, her face a mask.