Gemotions

"Did you hear?" The words, spoken a little too loudly by a passing student, pierced Mark's ears. He was halfway through his organic chemistry lab when the email had arrived. The words swam before his eyes. His carefully planned future, now… what?

He fumbled with the beaker in his hand, his movements jerky and clumsy. He dropped it with a loud crash. He quickly crouched to clean the shards, his face flushed.

He could feel the eyes of his lab partner, Lisa, on him. He mumbled an apology and retreated to the back corner of the room, wishing he could disappear. He tried to focus on the experiment, but his hands trembled.