Gemotions

He’d known something was off when the financial aid office called, but he'd hoped for the best. Now, standing in the crowded campus cafeteria, the news was delivered. The scholarship, the lifeline that had allowed him to study music, was not his. A clerical error. The words echoed in his ears, each syllable a hammer blow.

His cheeks flushed, a heat spreading across his face. He avoided eye contact, his gaze fixed on the plastic tray in his hands. It felt heavy, a weight mirroring the leaden feeling in his gut. He muttered something about needing to leave, the words barely audible.

The room seemed to spin as he pushed through the throng of students. He fled, needing to be anywhere but there, anywhere away from the pitying glances and hushed whispers he imagined following him. The vibrant colors of the campus, once so inviting, now seemed mocking.