Gemotions

He felt a cold sweat prickle across his skin. John watched as "Susan," his girlfriend, walked into the coffee shop, arm in arm with another woman. It was a woman he recognized as his coworker, “Carol.” He'd told both women he was on a tight budget. They both loved the same kind of books, and had the same dreams.

His ears burned. He wanted to melt into the floor. He knew he had to explain, but the words wouldn't come. He felt a deep sense of wrongness, of profound embarrassment washing over him.

He quickly turned around, leaving the expensive coffee untouched, and walked out, his steps uncoordinated, his gaze fixed on the pavement.