Gemotions

The scent of incense, unfamiliar and cloying, filled the small apartment. Across the small kitchen table, Maya’s gaze, usually sparkling with mischief, was intense, serious. She'd always been the rebel, the one to push boundaries. Now, she was telling her mother about her new spiritual path.

Maria watched her daughter, the details of the conversion swirling around her. She felt like her eyelids were glued shut. The words seemed to echo in her skull, each one a hammer blow. The spoon slipped from her numb fingers, clattering into the sink. She just wanted to sit down, to close her eyes, to make the room disappear.