Gemotions

The text message. Just the words, plain and brutal: "College is closing." Liam's phone slipped from his numb fingers, clattering onto the floor. His apartment, usually a refuge, became a suffocating box. The silence was deafening.

He pictured his parents' disappointment, the sacrifices they had made for him. The walls began to close in, and a cold sweat erupted on his forehead. The blood in his veins seemed to thicken.

He paced the confines of his small living room, unable to settle. He picked up his guitar, then set it down again, the strings feeling foreign beneath his fingertips. He felt untethered, adrift, with no clear path forward.