Gemotions

The office seemed to close in around her, the walls closing in. The paintings felt staged and artificial. The scent of air freshener was cloying. Her chest felt constricted, making it difficult to breathe. She hadn’t been this tense in ages.

She tried to focus on something, anything else. But the memory was there. The name. Dr. Alan Reeves, LCSW. And suddenly the room felt crowded.

She stared at the door across the room, at the heavy, dark wood. She remembered the way he had laughed. She thought about walking away, just getting up and leaving.

Her phone buzzed. She stared at it. She knew it was a reminder, a signal. A reminder that her session was starting soon.