Gemotions

The email shimmered on her phone, a stark white rectangle against the muted, grey morning. Sarah almost didn’t open it. She was late for her shift at the coffee shop and the thought of another day, another lukewarm latte and vapid conversation, was a lead weight in her chest. Yet, curiosity, a dangerous thing, twisted in her gut. The subject line, “Your Essay Featured!”, made her fingers tremble as she clicked.

A photograph of her younger, brighter self stared back at her from the screen. A photo of her from years ago. The words of her college essay, carefully crafted to convey ambition and hope, felt like a cruel joke now. They felt hollow, like the spaces between the floorboards in her cramped apartment. She slammed her phone shut, the metal clicking sharply in the silence. The world felt too loud, the street too busy. She was going to be very late.