Gemotions

A chill snaked up Leo's spine as he scrolled through the online admissions guide. There, in stark black and white, was his essay. The one he’d poured over, worried about, and then all but forgotten. Now, it was being held up as some kind of exemplar. He blinked, rubbing his eyes, but the words stubbornly remained: his words, his awkward prose, the vulnerability he’d tried to bury. He felt a peculiar lightness in his stomach, as if he might float away.

He swiveled in his desk chair, the plastic groaning in protest. He needed air. He grabbed his keys and bolted out of his cramped apartment, the late afternoon sun a blinding assault. Walking the familiar streets felt strange, each step echoing the hollow echo in his chest. Was this some bizarre mistake? A glitch in the system? The world seemed to wobble slightly.