Gemotions

The late afternoon sun cast long shadows across the dorm room. Liam felt a chill despite the warmth. He found his journal, the one with the cracked leather cover, lying open on his desk. He hadn’t left it there. A knot formed in his stomach. He picked it up, his fingers tracing the familiar indentations of his handwriting, now exposed.

He sat down heavily on his bed, the springs groaning in protest. Across the room, Mark was humming along to a song on his headphones, oblivious. Liam swallowed hard, the taste metallic in his mouth. He considered confronting him, but the words wouldn’t come. He just wanted to be somewhere else.

He closed the journal, the snap of the clasp echoing in the sudden quiet. He felt the need to get out, to breathe. He gathered his things and slipped out the door, the door frame cold against his back.