Gemotions

The photograph, slipped through the mail slot, landed with a soft thud on the hallway floor. Maya froze. She didn’t need to pick it up to know what it was, the snapshot of a shared memory, a stolen moment, a promise broken. She just knew.

Her breathing quickened, shallow and rapid. She backed away from the door, a wave of nausea washing over her. She gripped the wall, her knuckles white. The air felt charged, electric.

She wanted to run, to disappear, to scream. The photo was a violation, a trespass. Her carefully constructed facade felt like it was cracking. It brought back a time she had buried deep. She felt like she was suffocating.