Gemotions

Sarah’s fingers trembled as she scrolled. There it was, bold and clear, right on the college’s website: “Example Essay: Overcoming Obstacles.” A photograph of her, from the university’s acceptance day, smiled back at her, a moment captured in time. A rush flooded her chest, making it difficult to breathe.

She read her words, her own private thoughts, now public, and the realization hit her square in the face. She let out a tiny, involuntary gasp. The essay, describing her late father's influence on her ambition, suddenly felt monumental, a monument to her younger self. She sat back, her chair creaking under the sudden shift in her weight.

She thought, "They actually chose *my* story?" A warm flush crept up her neck and into her cheeks. It was too much to process. She glanced around her small apartment, a mess of books and half-empty coffee mugs. Then she laughed, a short, disbelieving sound.