Gemotions

The morning of the interview, the alarm jolted Maria awake. She felt a familiar heaviness in her chest. The job, for a marketing assistant, was perfectly adequate. It paid well enough, and it was close to her apartment. Her friend, David, however, had practically begged her to apply. He'd been talking about it for weeks, dreaming of building a career there.

During the interview, Maria found herself focusing on the texture of the conference room table. The interviewer's words seemed to drift in one ear and out the other. She answered the questions politely, but without any enthusiasm. Her palms remained dry, her heartbeat a steady, even rhythm.

Afterwards, David bombarded her with texts. She didn't reply for several hours. When she did, she sent a single emoji – a shrug.