Gemotions

The aroma of freshly brewed coffee usually filled the house with cheer, but today, it only served to highlight the silence. Clara moved through the morning like a sleepwalker. She opened the mailbox, a mechanical act. Bills. Flyers. And a card, covered in cartoon characters. It made no sense. Her birthday. She’d made no mention of it. No name. The card felt heavy, a physical manifestation of her interior world. She tossed it onto the counter, the bright colors a jarring contrast to the muted tones of her mood.