Gemotions

Liam was in the middle of a particularly boring staff meeting when it hit him. A colleague had passed around a new textbook. He casually flipped through it, not really paying attention, until a familiar phrase leaped out at him. "The Importance of Perspective," it began. He did a double take.

He felt a sudden, inexplicable chill, despite the stuffy conference room. His jaw dropped slightly. He blinked, focusing on the page. His essay. His deeply personal essay about growing up with a single mom. Word for word, paragraph for paragraph.

A wave of dizziness washed over him. He felt the blood drain from his face, leaving him feeling hollowed out and empty. The room seemed to shrink, the voices of his colleagues fading to a distant hum. He cleared his throat, a sound he barely recognized. "Excuse me," he mumbled, pushing back from the table. "I… I need some air."