Gemotions

The weight of the impending closure settled upon Emily the moment she received the email. She felt a pressure behind her eyes, the familiar precursor to a headache. Her mouth went dry. She couldn’t seem to swallow.

The building she was in, usually filled with laughter and activity, was now quieter than she had ever heard it. The familiar sounds of students bustling between classes were replaced by a tense, heavy silence. The thought of losing her friends, the only family she had known for years, tightened in her chest.

She went to the campus coffee shop, but she couldn’t bring herself to order. The aroma of coffee, which normally soothed her, now made her feel ill. She sat for a long time at a table, her hands clasped tightly together, staring into space.