Gemotions

The phone vibrated in her hand. A text from Chloe: "So excited for Mark's party!" Her birthday, a simple hike followed by a bonfire, seemed embarrassingly paltry compared to Mark's planned masquerade ball.

The small, cozy space she had planned to use for her bonfire now felt exposed and fragile. She slumped onto the couch.

She kept checking her reflection in the darkened screen, her mouth a thin line. She felt a growing sense of insignificance, as though her efforts were somehow lacking, or less important, than what Mark had planned. Her skin prickled uncomfortably.