Gemotions

The silence in the studio felt heavy, broken only by the scratching of graphite on paper. Noah had been pushing himself, fighting against the limitations of his own creativity. The constant pressure of the deadline, the need to surpass all expectations. A text message. It was from Olivia, the artist he was battling.

He read the message – a picture of her sketch, identical to his, followed by a series of surprised emojis. The blood seemed to stop rushing in his ears. He let out a long, slow breath. The tension in his shoulders eased.

He quickly responded. “So… what now?”