Gemotions

"This is not happening," muttered Emily as she surveyed the neat stacks. Years of book reports, art projects, and science experiments. All of it. Her jaw clenched. She remembered her mother's constant comments, her suggestions for improvement, her subtle criticisms. Emily felt a pulse in her forehead as she recalled a particularly brutal critique of her poetry. She began pacing, back and forth, trying to calm herself, but the anger was a tangible presence, a heavy weight in her chest.