Gemotions

The invitation’s arrival had coincided with a particularly difficult day at work. Liam tossed it onto the kitchen counter, next to the takeout containers. His back ached, his feet throbbed, and the thought of reliving those high school hallways filled him with a sudden, overwhelming fatigue.

He kept thinking about the way his old crush, Sarah, had looked at him. Or rather, the way she hadn’t looked at him. The memory was a persistent whisper in his mind. He glanced at his reflection in the microwave, his eyes red-rimmed. A different man, sure, but a man who still carried the burden of those adolescent insecurities.

He stared at the invitation, the embossed lettering mocking him. “Reunite! Relive! Reminisce!” He imagined the forced joviality, the carefully constructed narratives, the subtle judgments. He crumpled the paper in his fist, a small, frustrated sigh escaping his lips. He'd never liked being the center of attention.