Gemotions

"Did you hear?" Chloe's voice, usually bright and cheerful, was laced with a hushed fear. It made me jump. We were at our usual lunch spot, the crowded university cafeteria, but the cheerful chatter and clatter of trays suddenly felt alien. My appetite vanished.

I swallowed hard, my mouth suddenly dry. "I saw the email," I managed, my voice a thin thread. My fingers fidgeted with the straw in my half-eaten salad.

Chloe's gaze darted around the room, as if expecting the walls to collapse. "What are we going to do?" she asked, her voice cracking. I shrugged, unable to articulate the turmoil that churned within me. The future had become a blurry, uncertain landscape.