Gemotions

The silence in the gallery was deafening. Eleanor surveyed the bare walls, the empty easels, the ghost of her mentor's presence hanging in the air. Master Chen, the renowned artist who had taught her everything she knew, was simply…absent. A colleague had forwarded an email, a generic announcement, confirming his retirement. No personal message, no goodbye.

Eleanor walked slowly, carefully, over the polished floor. It felt as if someone had pulled the rug from under her feet. Her hands, usually eager to hold a brush, now felt heavy, useless. Her mind searched for some meaning in the abrupt event, though she didn't find any.

She clenched her fists. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. Chen, the man who had always insisted on clarity and truth, had vanished without explanation. Her shoulders slumped slightly as she considered the possibility that it was all an elaborate joke.