Gemotions

"It's just the aesthetic," the HOA representative had said, her voice smooth and practiced. "A unifying look for the neighborhood." Amelia stared at the plans, a neat blueprint illustrating the proposed fence line. She felt a prickling heat rise on her neck.

She had always loved her untamed backyard, the way the sunlight dappled through the branches of the old oak tree. The thought of a perfectly aligned, manufactured fence closing it in made her stomach clench.

That afternoon, she deliberately mowed her lawn, leaving the edges uneven, defying the neat parameters of the other gardens. She planted some extra flowers near the property line, so they would be spilling over in the direction of the proposed construction.