Gemotions

The world seemed to shrink around Sarah. The professor’s words, a polite explanation, felt distant, muffled. It wasn’t her scholarship; it belonged to another student, a clerical error. A wave of dizziness washed over her. She clutched the edge of the lecture hall desk, her knuckles white. She tried to formulate a response, but her voice caught in her throat.

The weight of the impending consequences settled on her shoulders. She wanted to scream, to run. She saw the faces of her family and pictured the shame. She had to stay upright. She needed to look normal.