Gemotions

The email arrived at 2:03 PM, the subject line a cold, clinical statement: "Important Company Update." Her hands, usually steady on the keyboard, fumbled as she clicked it open. Her breath hitched. The words blurred, but the gist was unmistakable: acquisition. She felt a sudden, icy grip around her chest, making it difficult to inhale. She reread the paragraph three times, each reading a fresh wave of that paralyzing anxiety. Her fingers, now numb, struggled to maneuver the mouse.

A colleague's casual "Hey, seen the email?" made her jump. "Yeah," she managed, her voice a reedy whisper. She looked away, pretending to focus on her monitor, but her vision swam. The fluorescent lights seemed too bright, the air thick and hard to navigate. She needed to leave, to get away, to find a place where this news didn’t feel like it was actively squeezing the life out of her.