Gemotions

The party was a disaster. The room buzzed with polite conversation, but beneath the surface, a thick tension crackled. The reason: her brother, Tom, had recently embraced Rastafarianism. It was his daughter's baptism, but he'd showed up with the telltale dreadlocks, and the smell of the… sacrament.

She forced a smile, but her jaw ached. She felt a constant, almost imperceptible tremor in her legs. She excused herself and went outside, the cool night air offering a small measure of relief.

She leaned against the brick wall, staring at the sky, trying to find some semblance of calm. The faces of her family, their confusion and disapproval, flashed through her mind. The thought of the future, of navigating family gatherings with this new reality, filled her with a profound sense of weariness.