Gemotions

The email notification chimed, a small, digital chirp that felt disproportionately loud in the quiet of her apartment. She knew what it was before she even clicked on it. Her heart, which had been beating a hopeful rhythm all morning, suddenly felt leaden. She’d been waiting for this for so long. She’d poured her soul into the story.

She leaned back in her chair, the sudden hollowness in her stomach a physical thing. The cursor blinked on the screen, a mocking metronome. She found herself scrolling through Facebook, looking at other people's happy lives, other people's success stories. She closed the laptop, a decision that felt utterly necessary.

The world outside seemed to be continuing, oblivious to her despair. The sun was still shining. The birds were still singing. And she felt a sense of immense… stillness.