Gemotions

The flickering fluorescent lights of the library hummed, a monotonous drone that matched the thrumming in Chloe's temples. She was supposed to be researching a history project, but the words swam before her eyes. The library, a place she usually loved, felt like a cage.

A push notification. It was Miss Evans, her choir teacher, requesting to follow her on Instagram. Chloe’s breath hitched. She loved choir, it was one of the few places she felt good. She hadn't posted anything of real substance in ages, just photos of sunsets and smiling faces that now felt like a lie.

Chloe closed the app, suddenly convinced she was a fraud. The weight of expectations, from her parents, from her teachers, from herself, felt crushing. She wanted to vanish, to disappear from the world.