Gemotions

The flowers sat on the desk, a splash of cheerful indifference amongst the piles of paperwork. She hadn't left the office since yesterday. The air hung thick with the scent of stale coffee and unfulfilled ambitions. She hadn’t even realized she was alone in the building, until the delivery person had appeared.

She'd been meticulously trying to sort through the paperwork, but her mind seemed to be rebelling, flitting from one thought to another. She wanted to feel a pang of something, anything other than this hollow numbness. She should have been happy, she reasoned, that someone cared enough to send her flowers.

She had to get up, she knew. She had to do something. So she reached out, touched a petal, and then turned away.