Gemotions

"Calm," Mark muttered under his breath, repeating the word like a mantra. He clenched and unclenched his fists, the knuckles white against his tanned skin. He'd found the article while doom-scrolling. He felt his face heat as he read his own words under a different name.

He had expected excitement, a thrill. Instead, a wave of nausea rolled through him. He reached for the bottle of water on his desk, bringing it to his lips, then putting it back.

He’d spent weeks agonizing over every sentence of his article, "The Unseen Architects of Urban Decay," obsessing over the perfect phrasing, the impeccable detail. Now, it was just… gone. Someone else was taking credit. A cold, hard anger ignited in him.