Gemotions

The bright sunshine outside felt like a mocking contrast to the gloom inside him. He sat in the tiny plastic chair, feeling a familiar tightness in his jaw. Mr. Evans, his daughter's teacher, looked exactly as he remembered, though it had been decades. He was too cheerful.

He had prepared himself for this. He had rehearsed the appropriate responses. But as the teacher began to speak, he realized that he had completely forgotten all of it. He felt trapped.

He nodded, a forced smile plastered on his face. The knot in his stomach tightened.