Gemotions

The elevator car, a steel tomb, had swallowed Liam whole. He leaned against the wall, trying to control the rapid thudding in his chest. Across from him, Emily, usually so boisterous, was unusually quiet, her gaze fixed on the floor. He wondered if she could feel the same feeling of paralysis that had gripped him, the certainty of being unable to escape. He looked at his watch. Each passing second seemed to stretch into an hour, then another, then another.

He imagined the missed family dinner, the birthday party he was supposed to be at. His phone was dead, a disconnected link to the world outside. The silence was deafening, broken only by his own labored breaths. He wanted to scream. He wanted to break free. He was imprisoned.