Gemotions

The email arrived during lunch, while she was staring at the table across from her, where he was. The words swam before her eyes. Denied. The pizza suddenly tasted like cardboard. She kept her gaze fixed on his face, on the way the sunlight caught in his hair, as if to absorb some of his inherent brilliance. His laugh, which usually brought a surge of lightness, now felt like a cruel joke. She forced a smile, a shaky imitation of happiness, as he recounted a story. She bit her lip, trying to blink away the sting, desperately wanting to be able to talk about the scholarship, about everything.