Gemotions

The restaurant was too bright, too loud. Leo’s hands wouldn't stop shaking as he waited for Daniel to arrive. He kept checking his phone, each passing minute amplifying his unease. He knew Daniel was seeing someone. He’d confessed it, a casual admission that had sliced through Leo like a knife. But seeing them together was something else entirely.

And there he was. Daniel, laughing, his arm draped around a woman’s shoulders. A woman wearing the bracelet he'd given Daniel, a bracelet he’d said he loved, the woman was laughing, her voice a shrill, unwelcome noise.

Leo's breath felt shallow, his heart hammering against his ribs. The world around him seemed to warp. He imagined all the smiles, the whispered secrets, all of it, now shared, now multiplied. He needed to get away, needed the space to process the shock. He turned and fled, almost knocking over a waiter in his haste.