I saw this old dude at the coffee shop today and like... it just got stuck in my head. all day. and now it's 2am and I can’t sleep cuz it’s just looping in my brain. He was like... really old. like, probably almost seventy. white hair, kinda hunched over but not like really old yet, you know? he had on this like, plaid shirt and these kinda baggy jeans. he was by himself, just sipping coffee. and there was this group of people, like, maybe in their twenties or thirties, kinda loud, laughing, talking about something about like, rent or something. my city is always like that. always loud always something. and the old dude just kinda... slid his chair over a little. like, not even all the way, just kinda angled towards them. and he kinda cleared his throat... like he was gonna say something. And it was just... CRINGE. like, watching a car crash in slow motion. everyone just went quiet for like, a second. and then they kinda... looked at each other. and then someone just kinda moved their chair like, a tiny bit away. and then another person kinda picked up their phone. and then the old dude just kinda like... shrunk. like a balloon when all the air goes out. he just kinda turned his chair back and stared into his coffee. his face got all red. like, really red. not like mad red, more like... a sunburn. or like, he was gonna cry. It was just so... heavy. the air in the room just got super thick. I felt it. I was just sitting there doing my homework, trying to pretend I wasn't watching the whole thing. but I couldn't NOT watch. and now it’s just... stuck. that feeling. like when you step on something squishy and you don't know what it is. that kind of dread. but for him. he probably just wanted to talk. like, maybe he was lonely or something. And I just keep thinking... what if that’s me someday? sitting alone, trying to talk to people and they just... move away. like I’m a ghost or something. like I’m invisible. it feels like a bad dream even though it really happened. I don't know why it hit me so hard. like a punch to the stomach. and I just want to forget it. but I can't.