Gemotions

Rain lashed against the window of the small, cramped apartment, mirroring the tempest within Leo. He had been looking forward to his usual evening of video games, a simple escape from the day’s relentless pressures, but that all went away. He sagged into the armchair, his shoulders slumped. A book, a biography, sat propped up on the coffee table. "Leo Maxwell: The Reluctant Hero."

Confusion blossomed into a furious heat. The author, a woman named Evangeline Thorne, had woven a narrative of his life, embellishing events and inventing scenarios. His life, a chaotic jumble of missed opportunities and quiet disappointments, transformed into something… heroic. The very idea made him want to lie down and sleep for a week.

He skimmed the pages, his breath catching in his throat with each fabricated detail. He wasn't the man in that book. This wasn't his life. He felt… hollow, the wind knocked out of him. The weight of the world settled on his shoulders, making him want to do nothing but stare at the wall.