Gemotions

He stared at the letter, a neatly typed notification, as if it were a venomous snake. His mouth hung slightly open, the air rushing in and out of his lungs in shallow gasps. The vibrant green of the university stationery felt… wrong, mocking even. He’d poured over this application, sacrificing sleep and sanity, and *this* was the result.

James slowly lowered the letter. His vision seemed to tunnel, everything around the paper fading into a hazy blur. He felt a rising heat in his cheeks, a flush that crept up his neck. He wanted to shout, to tear the paper to shreds. He just stood there, motionless, the silence of the library a heavy weight pressing down on him.

He attempted to swallow, but his throat had suddenly seized up. His fingers fidgeted, picking at the edge of the document as if he could somehow erase the words with his bare hands. He found himself unable to form a single coherent thought.