Gemotions

The card lay face up, the cheerful message a neon sign of mockery. "Happy Birthday!" it chirped, the font a playful mockery of her usual stoicism. She picked it up, her fingers leaving smudges on the glossy paper.

The silence in her apartment was deafening, broken only by the frantic hammering of her own pulse. She slammed the card on the counter, the force making the dishes rattle. The weight of all the things she couldn't say, couldn't do, pressed down on her chest, making it hard to breathe.

She stared at her reflection in the microwave door, a stranger with tired eyes. She felt the familiar sting behind her eyes. Another year, another reminder.