Gemotions

The new drawing taunted her from its place of prominence on the bulletin board. A lanky, brightly coloured figure, captioned "Sparkle-Pants." *Her* Sparkle-Pants. Her stomach churned. It felt like an invasion, a deliberate violation of the carefully constructed barrier she had built around her past.

“That’s… lovely, Lily,” she said, her voice strained. She hated the forced pleasantries. She wanted to scream, to demand that the drawings stop. But she couldn't. She didn't want to upset her sister. She would have to endure this invasion of her childhood.

She retreated to the corner, where the shadows of the room settled around her. The familiar ache in her chest returned. The unfairness of it all. Years of self-control, of suppressing the childish fantasies, all of it… undermined by a child with a box of crayons. She crossed her arms tightly, a knot of unease tightening in her stomach.