Gemotions

The PTA meeting felt like a punishment. Sarah avoided eye contact with Mrs. Gable, a woman who looked exactly the same as she did twenty-five years ago. The thought of all the school pranks, the half-hearted homework, and the whispered gossip she’d participated in during Mrs. Gable’s seventh grade class clenched her stomach. She’d tried to subtly slide her chair toward the back, hoping to disappear.

“So glad to see so many familiar faces,” Mrs. Gable announced, her voice as clear and bright as Sarah remembered. Sarah’s cheeks burned.

She found herself fidgeting, smoothing nonexistent wrinkles on her skirt. When Mrs. Gable called for questions, Sarah sunk lower, praying her son wouldn't bring up the time she’d gotten detention for setting off a stink bomb in the cafeteria. The image of the bright red detention slip, the echoing laughter from classmates, and Mrs. Gable's disappointed look flashed through her mind.