Gemotions

The school office felt suddenly small, the air thick with the scent of floor wax and anticipation. Jessica, clutching her daughter’s hand, felt a strange pressure building in her chest. She had assumed, naturally, that teachers would be different by now.

The principal was saying something, but Jessica couldn’t quite focus. Her ears were ringing. Finally, it came to her. The teacher's name. Mrs. Thompson. The same Mrs. Thompson who had been her sixth-grade teacher, the same Mrs. Thompson who always wore that awful floral dress and had those huge glasses.

She looked at her daughter, Lily, who was bouncing on the balls of her feet with excitement. A strange sensation, akin to falling, hit Jessica. It was like stepping through a portal into the past.