Gemotions

The stale air pressed against her chest. Each breath felt like a struggle. Her throat felt tight. Across from her, James, her coworker, seemed unfazed. He was humming a tune, and it made her skin crawl.

She started to pace the small space. Back and forth. Back and forth. She had to keep moving, to keep from thinking. The more she thought, the more the silence amplified every sound. The hum of the elevator, the drip of water that she thought she heard.

She kept looking over at James, waiting for him to do something, say something, anything. He wouldn't. He looked at her calmly. She felt it, a primal feeling of not being safe. She felt like she was being watched.

“Do you… do you think someone did this on purpose?” she asked, her voice shaking. The question hung in the air.