Gemotions

The request hung in the air, a sticky, unwelcome presence. Liam felt his jaw clench. He'd poured his heart and soul into that small patch of meticulously manicured green. A garden? That would ruin the lines, disrupt the symmetry, and… and…

He closed his eyes for a moment, picturing it. Weeds and haphazard rows. He could almost smell the earthy, cloying scent of decaying vegetables.

He forced a smile, a grimace really, onto his face. "I'll… I'll need to consider it," he said, his voice clipped. The words felt like sandpaper in his mouth. He abruptly turned and walked towards his shed, the crunch of gravel under his feet somehow satisfying.