Gemotions

"Oh, *hell* no," Maria muttered, tossing the invitation onto her desk. *Lincoln High School - 25th Reunion.* Twenty-five years. A sharp pain shot through her temples. She pressed her fingers against her forehead, trying to ward off the sudden wave of disorientation. The familiar office, her safe space for so many years, suddenly felt alien and cold.

She stood up abruptly, her chair scraping loudly against the floor. She needed to move, to do something. The computer screen seemed to mock her, a blank expanse of the unknown. She felt an overwhelming urge to flee, to disappear. All those faces, all those memories.

She grabbed her coat, not even bothering to think. Where was she going? It didn't matter, just away.