Gemotions

The worn leather of the diary felt cool against David's fingertips. He flipped through the brittle pages, searching for a specific date, when a folded piece of paper fluttered out. It was a letter, penned in his own youthful script, addressed to his high school sweetheart, Emily. He stopped breathing for a moment. He hadn’t thought about Emily in years.

He read the words, his initial disbelief quickly morphing into something else entirely. It was a letter expressing all of his unfulfilled dreams, insecurities and the raw pain of a first heartbreak. His face flushed. He'd forgotten how intensely he'd felt. He felt a sudden, inexplicable urge to sit down. He ran a hand through his thinning hair.