Gemotions

"I need another drink," said Alex, his voice a little too loud in the nearly empty bar. The bartender, a bored-looking woman, raised an eyebrow. Alex ignored it. He kept fiddling with the straw in his empty glass.

He had been celebrating the news with his friends, but when he learned the patent was already taken, the joy abruptly vanished. All the champagne in the world couldn't erase the feeling that had overtaken him. The bar's music was too loud, too insistent.

He felt a tightness in his chest, a sensation that made it difficult to breathe. He looked up at the bottles behind the bar, their labels blurred through his tears. He wanted to scream.