Gemotions

The stale air of the apartment clung to her like a shroud. The bills piled up on the counter, a constant reminder of her mounting debts. She’d lost her job, her apartment, her sense of hope. Each sunrise felt like a punishment, each day a struggle to survive.

She shuffled outside, needing any kind of escape. The yard sale was almost a relief. Her eyes fell upon the bear. The stuffed animal's single button eye stared back at her with a knowing sadness. The bear seemed to have been through even worse things than she had.

She wanted to laugh, to cry, to break down completely. She wanted to be held. She wanted to rewind time, to be a child again. Instead, she just stood there, unable to move, feeling a deep, suffocating weight on her chest.