Gemotions

The scent of pipe tobacco still clung to the air in Arthur's study, but Thomas was gone. Tucked away on his desk, however, was a notebook, filled with Thomas's familiar scrawl. A chapter titled "The Gardener's Patience" detailed their life together. It captured Arthur's love of the rose garden, the precise way he trimmed the hedges, the quiet joy he found in the earth. A deep satisfaction settled within Arthur, warming him from the inside out.

He felt a deep sense of…affirmation. Thomas, the stoic, the man of few words, had poured his feelings onto the page. He walked over to the window, gazing out at the garden. The sunlight seemed brighter, the roses more vibrant.

He picked up the notebook, a smile playing on his lips, and thought, "Well, I'll be."