Gemotions

The relentless tap-tap-tap of the keyboard was a mockery of calm. Sarah rubbed her temples, trying to focus on the report before her. The deadline was tomorrow, and the pressure was immense. She needed a break, even a fleeting one.

She’d been tasked with cataloging her aunt’s estate. Inside a battered shoebox, she found a trove of old photos. Her aunt, a woman who had been a model of quiet dignity, was captured in a series of images that revealed a whole other persona.

A woman dancing on tabletops, kissing a man in a sailor's uniform. Sarah's chest felt tight, the air around her suddenly thin. The disconnect between the stories she knew and the images before her was agonizing.