Gemotions

"Just browsing," David mumbled to the shopkeeper, pretending to be casual. But his eyes were glued to the familiar gleam in the case. The sapphire ring. He knew it. He knew it was her grandmother's.

He meandered closer, trying to appear unconcerned. The ring seemed almost alive, pulsing with a memory he was desperate to touch. He could almost hear her voice, could almost smell the rosewater she always used.

He found himself approaching the counter, his heart hammering against his ribs. “How much for… that blue one?” He barely recognized his own voice. The shopkeeper looked at him, then at the ring. He felt the weight of the past, pressing down on him, a sweet ache in his core.