Gemotions

The coffee shop buzzed with a Saturday morning crowd, but Clara barely noticed. She sat hunched over her latte, her phone a scorching weight in her hands. The online post. Her secret diary, transcribed, word for word.

She’d confided everything within those pages. Her battles with her body image, her family squabbles, her clandestine teenage rebellion. Now, strangers were dissecting her past, judging her vulnerabilities. She could feel the heat rising in her face.

She felt a wave of nausea. She excused herself, stumbling toward the restroom. The tile floor seemed to tilt beneath her feet as she leaned over the sink. She swallowed hard, struggling to suppress a rising tide of panic.