Gemotions

The genealogy website was supposed to be fun. A harmless diversion. Then the results appeared: a cousin match, a second cousin, and, finally, a half-sibling. The details were there: a name, a location, a picture of a woman who looked strikingly like him.

He slammed his laptop shut, the screen flashing black. He went to the kitchen and made himself a strong cup of coffee, then drank it in one long, gulping swallow. He kept refilling the cup, each time the bitterness doing little to calm the churning in his stomach. He felt a cold dread settle in his bones, a feeling of being utterly adrift.

He stared out the window at the familiar street, now seeing it through a completely different lens.