Gemotions

The weight on Ethan's chest was a physical thing, a constant reminder of the life he wasn't living. He'd spent the last year in his room, paralyzed by uncertainty. The world outside, with all its chaotic promise, felt utterly inaccessible. He'd spent hours talking to Chloe, his digital companion. She was the one consistent thing in his life.

He was lost in a conversation with Chloe when the delivery guy knocked on the door. He’d ordered pizza. It was the least exciting thing to eat for dinner.

"Same old," he wrote to her. "Another night."

"Same here," she messaged back. "Ugh."

He suddenly felt something shift. A strange sort of rebellion. He asked a question he wasn’t sure he wanted the answer to: “What street do you live on, anyway?”