Gemotions

The support group meeting felt suffocating. Everyone else was talking about their struggles, their pain, the limitations imposed by their shared condition. He listened, each account a fresh stab of…something. He couldn’t put a name to the feeling as he sat there, his shoulders hunched. A young woman with bright, cheerful eyes described a new experimental treatment she was considering. She spoke of hope, of possibility.

He clenched his jaw. Hope felt like a distant, cruel joke. He had spent years battling this disease, a constant barrage of symptoms that left him feeling depleted. He thought of his own treatments, their limited efficacy. His heart hammered. He glanced at the woman. Why was she so optimistic? He wanted to scream. He wanted her to be miserable like him. Instead, he just tuned them out, and stared out the window.