Gemotions

He stared at the document, the printout crumpling slightly in his grip. The information seemed to shift and distort before his eyes. His gaze became fixed on the paper, ignoring the world around him. He felt an intense, crushing pressure in his chest, as if someone had punched the air out of his lungs.

John, the new analyst, was making more than he was, even though John had only been at the firm for a year. John also didn't even know how to use all the software. John was the one he trained. John was... making more money. He couldn’t process it. He felt like he had been struck by lightning.

A colleague's voice, asking a question, seemed to come from miles away. He could only mumble a response, his voice raspy and unfamiliar.