Gemotions

The phone felt heavy in her hand. Emily kept staring at the screen, re-reading the email. Tears pricked her eyes, but she stubbornly blinked them away. The scholarship, her salvation, taken from her. She felt a frantic need to move, to do something, anything. She began pacing, her steps quick and uneven, the floorboards groaning under her agitated energy.

The memory of her parents’ faces, their sacrifices for her education, flashed through her mind. The thought of their disappointment tightened her chest, making it hard to breathe. She bit her lip, tasting the metallic tang of blood. She felt a raw, exposed feeling, like she’d been stripped bare.