Gemotions

He hadn't slept, but when the alarm finally blared, it was the sound of a funeral bell. The news had felt like an injury. He stood in the shower, the hot water doing nothing to soothe his knotted muscles. His thesis advisor, Dr. Bell, had accepted a position elsewhere.

He ran his hands over his face, as if he could scrub away the weariness. His plan, his dream of finishing his PhD under Bell's tutelage, now lay in ruins. He felt a hollowness in his chest, a sense of loss that defied description. He scrubbed at his skin until it was raw.