Gemotions

The review, a venomous pronouncement, had just been published. Chef Jean felt a sense of profound disorientation. His carefully constructed world, his passion and his purpose, seemed to have been irrevocably shaken. “A failure of imagination,” the critic had written.

He stared at the screen, the words blurring before his eyes. The phone slipped from his hand, clattering to the floor. He didn't even notice. He felt as if he had been physically struck.

He instinctively reached for his apron, finding the familiar fabric a small comfort. He walked slowly toward the back door of his restaurant, the bright sunlight outside a stark contrast to the darkness that had enveloped him. He took a deep breath, trying to calm the hammering in his chest.