Gemotions

Liam was in the middle of a particularly boring lecture on the French Revolution when his phone buzzed. He saw the notification on his screen – Ms. Evans, his English teacher, had started following him. He let out a small, quiet sigh and buried his phone beneath his book.

He looked over at her during the break. She was talking to another teacher, her expression animated. Liam picked at a loose thread on his jeans. He couldn't quite bring himself to care. The whole situation felt like another small, insignificant detail in the already overflowing calendar of his life.

The next day, during class, Ms. Evans called on him to answer a question. He responded, his voice flat. She looked directly at him, a flicker of something unreadable passing through her eyes, and then she moved on to another student. He returned his attention to the text, a novel he found to be utterly unremarkable.