Gemotions

The diagnosis had been a blow, leaving a hollowness within. He sat on the cracked steps of the courthouse, sunlight bleaching the color from the stone. The world was too bright, too loud. John felt like his inner compass had shattered.

A woman walked by, glancing at him with a look of shared… uncertainty. She paused, then sat down on the step beside him, not saying anything. After a long moment of silence, she took out a small, worn photograph. He recognized the image: it was a stylized representation of the cellular structure of… their condition.