Gemotions

Rain lashed against the windows, mirroring the storm brewing inside Maya. She paced the length of her tiny apartment, the floorboards creaking a mournful rhythm. A restless energy consumed her. She’d spent the afternoon with Chloe, reliving their senior prom. Chloe had described the night as a carefree celebration, filled with laughter and dancing.

Maya felt her face flush, heat prickling her skin. The memory of her own night was a tangled mess of anxiety and disappointment, hidden shame. She remembered the awkwardness, the humiliation, the crushing realization that she hadn't belonged. Chloe’s retelling felt like a deliberate erasure of her experience, a painful denial of what she had felt. Her breath hitched, her lungs constricted.