Gemotions

He poured himself another glass of whiskey, the amber liquid doing little to calm the tremor in his hands. Robert received the news with a curt nod, but inside, a knot of…something…had tightened in his gut. A fence, he thought.

He glanced at the empty chair across the table, at the view of the shared land. The casual camaraderie. The shared projects. It was all a thing of the past. He ran a hand over his face, his skin prickling with sweat despite the cool evening air.

He stared at the whiskey, then drank it down in one gulp, the burn of the alcohol doing little to chase away the growing anxiety. He felt a deep sense of loss. He knew he should have been prepared for this; their world was always in flux. Still, the reality of it felt like a betrayal.