Gemotions

He ran a hand through his hair, leaving it standing on end. Liam’s palms were slick with sweat. He stared at the empty space where his journal usually resided on his desk. Gone. His stomach lurched, a cold, hard knot forming in its depths. His roommate, Mark, was humming in the kitchen, casually making a sandwich.

Liam couldn't meet Mark’s eyes. He felt a throbbing pulse behind his eyelids. Every word, every shared laugh, now felt tainted, a betrayal of privacy. The world had just shrunk, closing in on him.

He excused himself, claiming a sudden headache, and fled to the campus library. The hushed tones and the scent of old paper offered no solace. The words he’d confided, the secrets he'd poured onto those pages – they were no longer his. They were in someone else's hands.