Gemotions

The email icon on her phone throbbed, a relentless pulse in her pocket. She avoided looking at it, pretending to be utterly absorbed in the intricate patterns of the floral wallpaper in the café. Every few seconds, her fingers would twitch, itching to check. A coldness crept into her extremities, a chill that had nothing to do with the air conditioning. She finally relented, pulling out the phone. Her breath hitched as she tapped the email app.

It was the subject line that did it. The polite but impersonal words, "Scholarship Application Update," were enough to make her stomach plummet. She gripped the phone tightly, knuckles turning white, as she forced herself to scroll. Her eyes scanned the familiar format, the standardized wording.

The final sentence, the one that really mattered, swam into focus, blurring around the edges. She felt a tremor run through her and she slumped back against the chair. The vibrant colors of the café suddenly seemed dull, lifeless.