Gemotions

Sarah kept her head down, busily stirring her coffee. The text message had come out of the blue: *“Coffee shop, 2 pm. You there?”* It was Max, her online gaming buddy, the guy who always made her laugh even when she was losing badly.

She looked up when the bell above the door jingled. There he was. He stopped dead, his mouth slightly agape, a takeout coffee clutched in his hand. He was tall, way taller than she imagined, and his messy hair looked even messier in person.

Her heart thumped against her ribs. She felt a strange tingling sensation, and she instinctively reached up to adjust her glasses. She hadn't been prepared for this. He just stood there, frozen.

"Hey," she mumbled, her voice sounding far away.