Gemotions

The coffee tasted like burnt ash. Ethan slouched in his usual corner booth at the university cafeteria, the menu unread, the lukewarm beverage untouched. The clatter of cutlery and the murmur of conversations seemed to fade into a dull background noise. He picked at a loose thread on his jeans. He could feel the pressure behind his eyes, a dull ache.

An announcement came over the PA system. Dr. Davies, his advisor, was moving to another institution. A strange, listless apathy washed over Ethan. He’d spent months, fueled by coffee and a vague sense of ambition, trying to decipher Davies's intricate theories. Now it felt like he had been trying to build a sandcastle on a sinking beach. He took a single, unsatisfying sip of his coffee and looked at his phone.