Gemotions

He stared out the window, the scene before him blurred by a sheen of unshed tears. The music from the house next door, a thrumming beat, seemed to burrow into his bones. His jaw clenched, a muscle jumping in his cheek. He felt a cold dread wrapping around his heart.

He’d tried everything. The earplugs, the noise-canceling headphones, the white noise machine. Nothing worked. It was like living inside a drum. The letters he had written, the polite requests. Nothing had changed.

His hands shook as he reached for the phone, the familiar number already entered. He couldn't do this. He couldn't. He slowly put the phone down, not able to take one more thing.