Gemotions

The screen flashed the dreaded words, “Delayed Indefinitely.” Sarah's heart sank, not merely from sadness, but from something far colder. Her best friend's engagement party. Years of planning, a carefully chosen speech, now all for naught. She imagined the champagne flowing, the laughter, all without her.

She grabbed the nearest magazine, ripping out pages with ferocious intent. She felt her face flush, the heat spreading through her chest. The other passengers, oblivious to her internal torment, seemed to amplify her ire. She wanted to yell, to lash out at the innocent bystanders.

She saw a woman laughing with a child and the sound grated on her ears. It was all a personal slight, an elaborate insult. Each tick of the clock was another knife twist, each announcement another drop of poison into her well of feelings.