Gemotions

The car keys felt heavy in his trembling hand. He’d slammed the door of his apartment too hard, a reflection of the agitation churning within him. His shoulders were bunched, as if perpetually braced against an invisible threat. He hadn’t slept properly in days, the images of what he was dealing with in his job replaying like a broken record in his mind. The thought of adding another thing to his already overloaded schedule was more than he could bear.

He pulled into the parking lot of the therapy office, the building looking utterly unremarkable. He walked through the door.

“Ethan?" A voice sliced through the tension. He froze. It was Debbie. Debbie, the girl who used to make his life a living hell in high school. Her once razor-sharp wit now seemed…gentle. He felt a wave of nausea, followed by a surge of pure, unadulterated anger.