Gemotions

The fluorescent lights hummed, an irritating, unwavering sound that seemed to burrow into Amelia's skull. Three hours. It felt like a lifetime. She watched the seconds tick by on her phone, a meaningless parade of digits. Her stomach churned. A dull ache, a heavy weight, settled in her chest. She hadn't felt quite right since… well, since forever, it seemed. She glanced at Mark, her coworker, fiddling with the emergency phone. He looked frustrated. That was better than the hollowness she was feeling, the quiet emptiness that threatened to swallow her whole.

"Anything?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper. The question felt heavy in her throat.

He shook his head, his brow furrowed. The elevator felt stuffy, the air thick with unspoken anxieties. She closed her eyes, imagining the sun, the wind, the boundless freedom of the world outside this metal box.