Gemotions

"Are you alright, dear?" Her mother's voice, laced with concern, cut through the tension in the kitchen. Sarah, leaning over the steaming pot of soup, nearly jumped. The email – the devastating email – still fresh in her mind, made her hands feel clumsy.

She managed a weak smile. "Fine, just… a long day." It was an understatement. The article, her groundbreaking analysis of environmental trends, was in print, but not with her name. She felt a pressure behind her eyes, the familiar precursor to tears. She ladled soup into a bowl, her movements jerky and imprecise. The spoon clattered against the ceramic, a sharp, unwelcome sound.