Gemotions

The basement, damp and musty, held the lingering scent of old books and forgotten promises. Sarah, rummaging for Christmas decorations, unearthed a manila envelope. Inside, a single typed page, a letter from her stepmother to her biological mother, the letter a confession of something that felt close to a betrayal.

Sarah’s breath hitched. She and her stepmother had shared a tense, unspoken understanding, a careful dance of polite distance. She’d always judged her stepmother for this perceived slight.

She crumpled the letter in her fist. The knot in her stomach tightened. She hated that she’d spent so much time harboring resentment. Sarah walked upstairs, the envelope clutched in her hand.