Gemotions

He had to get out of the library. The accusation hung over him like a suffocating blanket, smothering every thought. He slammed his laptop shut, the metallic clang echoing too loudly in the hushed space. His palms were slick with sweat, the paper feeling papery and fragile between his fingers.

He needed air, space to think, to untangle the mess. He bolted out into the afternoon sun, squinting against the brightness. The green of the campus lawn seemed aggressively cheerful, and he wanted to be anywhere else. His pulse hammered in his ears, a frantic drumbeat urging him to flee.

The professor’s words replayed in his head, each syllable a shard of glass.