Gemotions

The coffee cup trembled in Leo’s hand. Professor Ramirez, his advisor, was a rock. Now, the bedrock was crumbling. He'd just spent the last hour gushing about his progress, about the exciting new direction he was taking his thesis. He wanted to melt into the floorboards. Leo cleared his throat, the sound a dry rasp. He nodded, trying to appear unfazed, but his smile felt plastered on, brittle and synthetic. He felt a sudden, intense desire to escape the confines of the office, to disappear into the anonymity of the campus crowd.