Gemotions

He’d almost forgotten the party, and now here he was, awkwardly shaking hands. David shifted from foot to foot, the shoes pinching. The sound of forced laughter and chatter felt like needles pricking at his ears. His father's years of service were being celebrated, and he felt a cold hollowness inside.

He saw his reflection in the mirrored wall, a pale ghost in a rented tuxedo. The smile he forced felt like a grimace. He felt utterly out of sync with the festive atmosphere.

He remembered the speech he’d drafted, carefully outlining his father’s achievements. But the words seemed irrelevant, detached from his own experience. He took a deep breath, trying to summon a spark of something, anything. Nothing came.