Gemotions

"Did you see the memo?" Mark asked, his voice low. He leaned against the doorway of Sarah's cubicle, his usually animated face now somber. He seemed off-kilter, like a ship adrift at sea.

Sarah hadn't. She’d been too busy wrestling with a budget report that wasn't making sense. When she finally opened the email, the announcement hit her like a punch to the gut. *Strategic realignment. Future opportunities…* The phrases were designed to reassure, but the implication was clear.

She took a deep breath, trying to steady the tremors in her hands. The room felt suddenly cramped, the familiar beige walls closing in. She glanced at her desk, at the photos of her family. All of this, her whole life, tied up in this place. A cold dread seeped into her bones.