Gemotions

He stared at the email on his phone. The sender: *The Girl Who Got Away*. He hadn't seen her in twenty-five years. The memories, once carefully locked away, now surged forward, vivid and painful. He closed the laptop. The glow of the screen pulsed in the darkness.

He felt the familiar thrum of anxiety begin in his chest, radiating outwards. He walked to the window, the city lights blurring through unshed tears. The city felt cold, alien. He thought about the person he'd become, and how little it resembled the boy he'd been.

He sat on the edge of his bed, head in his hands, reliving the moment he'd let her go. He replayed the conversation and the decisions he'd made. He had been so young, so foolish.