Gemotions

The chair squeaked violently as David shot to his feet, scattering the papers on his desk. His heart hammered against his ribs, a frantic drumbeat against the sudden silence in his apartment. The email, with its official header and sterile language, had just arrived. A mix-up. An error. The scholarship he’d been awarded, the scholarship that had allowed him to escape his dead-end job and pursue his passion for engineering, was not meant for him.

He slammed his fist on the table, the impact making his hand ache. His palms were slick with sweat. He grabbed his phone, his fingers clumsy as he dialed the financial aid office, a voice on the phone now seemed like a distant threat. His voice cracked as he spoke, his carefully constructed composure crumbling.

He paced the room, his agitation growing with each passing second, the floorboards groaning under his frantic movements. He needed to understand. He needed to fix this. It was impossible to breathe. The world seemed to be closing in around him.