Gemotions

The afternoon sun, a glaring presence, streamed through the blinds, illuminating dust motes dancing in the air. Maya lay sprawled on her bed, the covers tangled around her legs. She stared at the ceiling, counting the tiles. Each one was the same, repeated over and over. A wave of restlessness washed over her. Her life felt like a movie she’d seen a hundred times. Then, a Facebook message: a mutual friend’s post about a family secret, and a tagged photo. A woman she’d never met stared back at her from the screen, her uncanny resemblance to Maya both unsettling and captivating.