Gemotions

Rain lashed against the windows of the university’s financial aid office, mirroring the turmoil churning in Maya’s stomach. She'd just been informed, in a clipped tone, that the scholarship covering her tuition had been awarded in error. The money was meant for another student, a Mr. Chen, whose family's circumstances were supposedly more dire.

Her fingers, suddenly clumsy, fumbled with the strap of her messenger bag. She felt a flush creep up her neck. The financial aid officer kept repeating "a simple mistake," but the words felt like shards of ice. Maya imagined the other student, a person she didn’t even know, waiting on this financial aid.

The thought of someone else's disappointment, a mirror to her own rising panic, made her throat tighten. She bit her lip and muttered a thanks before turning to leave, the weight of the news pressing heavily on her.