Gemotions

The notification sat there, a bright blue beacon in the otherwise mundane sea of her social media feed. Mark Thompson. The name swam before her eyes. She blinked, once, twice. It was definitely him. The boy who’d stolen her lunch money for a solid year in fifth grade. Her jaw dropped slightly.

A shaky breath escaped her. She felt her chest tighten. What did he want? A sudden wave of nausea washed over her. She clicked on his profile, a morbid curiosity overriding her initial shock. A picture of him, smiling, with a wife and two kids.

Her fingers hovered over the "accept" button. She felt a cold sweat prickle her skin. This had to be a joke, right? Some elaborate prank. She closed her laptop, the screen going black, a sudden darkness mirroring the chaos brewing inside her.