Gemotions

She slammed her locker shut, the metallic clang echoing through the nearly empty hallway. Sarah felt a prickling heat rise in her cheeks. An F. Her carefully constructed facade of competence, the one she’d so meticulously crafted, felt like it was crumbling. Tears threatened, but she blinked them back, furious at her own weakness. The world seemed to tilt on its axis. She pushed past a group of giggling students, their laughter grating on her nerves, and fled to the sanctuary of the empty art room. She picked up a lump of clay and squeezed it, her knuckles turning white.