Gemotions

The fluorescent lights in the elevator hummed, a shrill counterpoint to the silence that had fallen between Amelia and David. She could feel the heat prickle on her neck, spreading down her spine. The air conditioning seemed to have given up the ghost. Three hours. Three hours she’d been stuck here, and three hours she'd been silently reliving the moment she’d tripped and nearly landed in David’s lap during the company picnic. She’d laughed it off then, but now, trapped with him, the memory was a slow-motion replay of her utter clumsiness.

"So," David finally said, his voice a low rumble. "This is... something."

Amelia forced a smile, her cheeks burning. "You could say that." She fidgeted with the hem of her blazer, pulling at the fabric. Every time their eyes met, her stomach did a somersault.

The small talk felt stilted, unnatural. She wished the floor would open up and swallow her whole, preferably before he brought up that presentation she’d completely flubbed last week.