Gemotions

“Congratulations, Elena!” The words echoed, each one a sharp jab to the chest. She’d been waiting for this. Elena, the name attached to the triumphant byline, was a stranger. Inside, she felt a corrosive burn, a dark and bitter taste.

She slammed the laptop shut, the abrupt action making her jump. The silence of her apartment became a torment. The clean, sterile environment felt somehow unclean now.

She grabbed a kitchen knife. The metal gleamed in the dim light. She began to chop vegetables with a vengeance, the rhythmic thud of the knife against the chopping board the only sound that could pierce through the chaos.