Gemotions

The email arrived, a digital dagger. The subject line: "Promotion Announcement." He saw it before it even rendered fully in his inbox. He stared at it, the screen a hazy mirror reflecting his own bleak expression.

He sat for what felt like an hour, unmoving, the silence of the office pressing in on him. He felt disconnected, like he was watching his life unfold from a distant planet.

He felt the familiar throb behind his eyes, the pressure that signaled the beginning of a headache he knew wouldn’t end until he went to sleep. He imagined the congratulatory messages already flooding Sarah’s inbox. He closed his eyes, then deleted the email without reading it.