Gemotions

The flickering airport lights blurred through Amelia’s tears. A knot tightened in her stomach, a physical manifestation of the dread that coiled around her. She’d been waiting for four hours, and the announcement board stubbornly refused to update. Her sister's wedding. She was supposed to be there.

She tugged at the hem of her dress, the silk feeling rough against her skin. Each automated delay announcement felt like a personal insult, a deliberate act of cruelty. Her phone buzzed; a picture of her niece, dressed in lace, with her mother's joyful expression. Amelia pressed the phone against her chest, the screen cool against her heated skin.

She excused herself from the throng of stranded travelers and went to the quietest corner she could find, near a potted, wilting fern. The air conditioning blew cold, raising goosebumps on her arms.