Gemotions

Her hands trembled as she deleted the email. It was a digital erasure, a futile attempt to make the rejection disappear, but the words were burned into her memory. She felt the sudden urge to run, to escape.

She grabbed her coat and practically sprinted from her apartment, the cool air hitting her like a slap. She started walking, not knowing where she was going, her pace quickening with each step.

She walked until her legs ached, until the setting sun cast long shadows, until she felt a sense of exhaustion finally begin to replace the churning in her stomach. Even then, the words, those carefully constructed phrases of polite refusal, still echoed in her mind.