Gemotions

“Oh, that’s…nice,” Leo said, forcing a smile. He was sitting at a crowded dinner table, surrounded by his extended family, when his aunt, beaming, brought up the article. He wanted to disappear.

He picked at his food, the taste of the roast chicken suddenly bland. He felt a blush creep up his neck, the heat radiating outwards. He tried to focus on the conversation, but his mind kept replaying the words, the opening sentence, the vulnerable confessions.

The room seemed to shrink, the voices of his relatives becoming a dull hum. He felt an intense, irrational urge to escape, to run far away from their well-meaning praise.