Gemotions

Rain lashed against the windows, mirroring the tempest inside Amelia. She stared, unseeing, at the text message notification blinking on her phone – "Packing up the moving van now! See ya soon!" It was from Liam, her best friend, who was leaving for California. Her jaw tightened, a dull ache spreading through her temples. She let the coffee grow cold in her mug.

Her apartment felt cavernous, the silence amplified by the drumming of the downpour. She usually loved the sound, found it soothing. Today, it was just another unwelcome accompaniment to her mood. She wrapped her arms around herself, as if trying to physically contain the hollowness that had opened up in her chest.

She absentmindedly flicked through photos on her phone of her and Liam, laughing, hiking, just existing together. Each picture was a fresh stab of longing. She deleted the pictures of them together as a result of the sting.