Gemotions

The afternoon sun cast long shadows across the cluttered office, illuminating the dust motes that danced in the air. Michael, frustrated with a particularly difficult tax return, decided to take a break and rummage through his desk drawers. He stumbled upon an envelope, yellowed with age, bearing his own handwriting. He ripped it open.

He sank back in his chair, the world tilted on its axis. The letter detailed grand schemes, a future bursting with ambition, a life he had once envisioned. The person he'd been back then was a complete stranger and yet also, intimately, himself. He laughed, a sound that started low in his chest and bubbled out uncontrollably. His hand trembled as he reached out to touch the paper.