Gemotions

He’d always felt like an imposter. Now, the revelation confirmed his deepest fear. Liam, a scholarship recipient at a prestigious music conservatory, sat hunched in the corner of the grand, echoing practice room. The information hung over him, cold and heavy, like the bronze of the nearby piano.

His usually confident posture was slumped, and his shoulders seemed to curve in on themselves. He’d been practicing Chopin, but the familiar notes now grated, each wrong note a reminder of his perceived deception. He could feel his face flush, the tips of his ears burning.

He imagined the judging eyes of his classmates, their carefully crafted critiques now laced with a new kind of contempt. He gripped his hands, nails digging into his palms, the pressure a small comfort. The weight of it all was crushing.