Gemotions

The email arrived at 2:17 AM. Sarah squinted at the screen, the blue light harsh against her face. "Congratulations! Your essay has been selected…" it chirped. Selected for what? She clicked the link with a deliberate, slow drag of the cursor. There it was: “The Admissions Standard: A Selection of Exemplary Essays.” And there, under a heading that practically screamed “Look at me!”, was *her* essay, the one she’d poured her heart into, the one that had gotten her rejected from every single school she’d applied to. A coldness settled in her stomach.

She considered the coffee table, currently populated with a messy assortment of magazines and a half-eaten bag of chips. She grabbed her phone and snapped a picture. This would be going on Twitter. Under a caption that would be *very* polite, of course.

She reread the essay. Every word, every carefully crafted sentence, felt like a personal affront now. This… this wasn't an honor. This was a cosmic joke. She felt a tickle in her palms.