Gemotions

A tremor ran through Liam's hands as he re-read the article, the headline screaming: "Famed Novelist Accused of Plagiarism." He hadn't expected to see his own unpublished short story, "The Crimson Tide," so prominently featured in the evidence. The feeling in his chest was akin to being kicked in the stomach. He clicked through the accompanying links, the similarities leaping out at him, a sickening echo of his own words.

He remembered the hours spent hunched over his laptop, pouring his soul into the piece. He’d imagined his favorite author, Eleanor Vance, reading his work and nodding in approval. Now, it felt like she had reached into his mind and stolen a part of him. A flush of heat crept up his neck; he could barely stand to be in his own skin. He stood up, knocking over his coffee mug.

The spilled coffee spread across the counter like a stain, mirroring the ugly stain on Vance's reputation. He kicked at the shards of ceramic, a frustrated shout trapped in his throat. He felt like his foundation had been pulled from under him. The man he idolized, the writer he spent years studying, had just stolen his identity.