Gemotions

The silence in the car was thick, heavy, suffocating. Anna stared out the window, watching the blurring scenery, her mind a tangled mess. She tried to replay the tryouts, searching for a misstep, a flaw, anything that could explain this outcome. But her thoughts were scattered, fragmented, impossible to organize.

Her hands clenched into fists, the nails digging into her palms. The sensation was the only thing that felt real. The world felt muffled, as if she were underwater. The disappointment was crushing, and yet she felt almost…numb, as though she were watching her life from a remote distance. The future she had so carefully mapped out had suddenly disintegrated.