Gemotions

The pounding started again. From next door. It vibrated through the floorboards, a relentless thrumming that clawed at her nerves. She flinched, pulling the duvet tighter around herself. Her heart hammered a frantic rhythm against her ribs.

Her breath hitched in her throat, shallow and rapid. She considered calling the police, but the thought made her hands tremble. They wouldn't understand. She wasn't even sure *she* understood.

She huddled deeper under the covers, imagining the anger boiling in Mr. Henderson’s face, the words he would use. The walls of her apartment seemed to be closing in, trapping her in a suffocating silence punctuated only by the booming bass.