Gemotions

"What?!" Liam exclaimed, the word exploding out of him, startling the barista. His fingers tightened around the lukewarm coffee cup. He had just read the news on his phone. The coffee shop’s music seemed louder, the chatter of other customers now intrusive.

He felt a compulsion to move, to keep busy. He finished the coffee in two long gulps. He needed something, a distraction. He scanned the room, his eyes missing nothing. The light fixtures, the artwork on the walls, everything seemed incredibly vivid.

He needed to see it, he thought. To confirm it. To be there, in front of the building, to comprehend the closure of the place he had spent countless afternoons. He left the coffee shop, and headed for The Golden Spoon.