Gemotions

The book arrived in a plain brown wrapper, postmarked from a publisher she'd never heard of. Her name, in large, confident letters, blazed across the cover: "The Accidental Archivist: A Life Uncovered." Her jaw tightened. Her fingers, when she finally pried open the package, were clumsy and reluctant.

A picture of her, taken without her consent at the grocery store, leered back. Inside, the pages detailed her childhood mishaps, her awkward teenage years, her disastrous first date. A blush crept up her neck, a creeping heat that radiated across her face. She felt a need to hide, to vanish.

She slammed the book shut, the sound echoing in her suddenly small apartment. A wave of nausea rolled over her. She paced, clutching her stomach, muttering under her breath, a low, constant hum of outrage.