Gemotions

The sunlight streaming through the office window felt too bright, too intrusive. Sarah hunched over her desk, tracing the outline of her coffee mug with a shaky finger. Her hands were clammy. This morning she’d felt so optimistic, so proud of her presentation.

She'd been so sure it would impress her boss. Now, seeing Mark's nearly identical slides displayed on the projector screen, she felt something cold spread through her chest. The same data, the same conclusions, the same innovative approach. He'd beaten her to the punch.

She couldn’t look at him. She stared fixedly at her own notes, now irrelevant and useless. The words blurred before her eyes, and she blinked, trying to regain control.