Gemotions

"No, no, that can’t be right," Maya muttered, staring at the screen. Her vision swam slightly, and she blinked rapidly, trying to clear it. Professor Chen was her rock, the person who made her believe in herself. Now he was gone.

She pushed her chair back, the screech echoing in the empty office. She paced the small room, her steps quick and erratic, like a caged animal. Each circuit of the space felt like an attempt to outrun the news.

She picked up her phone, intending to call her friend Sarah, but her fingers froze above the dial button. The words felt too hard to say. Instead, she walked over to the window, watching the wind whip through the trees. The familiar landscape suddenly seemed alien, the branches swaying in a rhythm that matched the erratic beat of her heart. The sheer blankness of the next few years seemed to stretch before her.