Gemotions

The house seemed to shrink around Liam, the walls closing in. He sat at the kitchen table, the bucket list spread open before him. The paper felt cold and clammy beneath his fingertips. *Learn to speak Spanish.* He clenched his jaw, the muscles in his face tight. His father’s handwriting, so deliberate and precise, seemed to mock him.

He ran a hand through his hair, his fingers tangling in the strands. He couldn't keep still. His leg bounced up and down relentlessly, a nervous energy coursing through him. He felt the familiar heat rising in his neck. *Get married and have a family.* The words were a knife twisting in his gut. The weight of his father's unfulfilled ambitions felt unbearable.