Gemotions

The apartment was filled with a thick, cloying silence. For weeks, Maya had been circling the same orbit, the same tasks, the same muted conversations with Liam. The monotony was a physical weight. Then, one evening, while he was attempting a complex recipe (another attempt to break free), Liam had answered the phone.

“¿Cómo estás, amor?” Liam said into the phone, his voice tinged with a cadence Maya had never known. Her hands, covered in flour, froze mid-roll. She felt a sudden, heavy pressure in her lungs, a feeling of being caught in a current. She leaned against the counter, suddenly lightheaded. What was this new facet of her life?