Gemotions

The community pool buzzed with activity, children splashing and laughing. Jessica sat on the edge, her feet dangling in the water. She watched her childhood friend, Lily, laughing with her children. They were the same age as she was, but the joy in Lily's face felt different, distant.

Jessica had tried to reconnect. She sent a message. It went unanswered. She bumped into her at the grocery store. Lily smiled politely, but the light in her eyes did not recognize Jessica. She felt like an outsider, peering in on a life that was once hers.

The chlorine smell filled the air. She felt a strange physical sensation, as though she were being held under the water, unable to breathe. She got up, the weight of a submerged sadness weighing on her. She had to escape, to breathe again, away from this place of joyful echoes and forgotten bonds.