Gemotions

The park bench felt cold against her back. Sarah stared at the ducks paddling listlessly in the pond, their movements mirroring the sluggishness that had taken hold of her. This picnic date, supposedly romantic, felt like a chore. She was waiting for Tom, who was, predictably, late. She hadn’t been this restless in weeks.

She pulled out her phone. No messages. She rubbed her temples. The sunlight felt harsh. She felt a kind of emptiness, a void that yawned within her.

Eventually, Tom arrived, his smile a little too bright, his apologies a little too rehearsed. He regaled her with a story about a family crisis. The story felt rehearsed, like something she'd heard before. He was talking for a long time.

Later, she met another woman who also knew Tom. It turned out, they'd both been told exactly the same story, right down to the character details.