Gemotions

The newspaper crinkled loudly in Amelia's hands, the sound amplified in the otherwise hushed library. Her grip tightened, the paper threatening to tear. There, in the local events section, was the profile of "AceOfSpades," the friend she had been talking to online. The author of a local poetry reading.

Amelia felt a surge of heat rush up her chest. She had confided in this person about her failing relationship, her career aspirations, her fear of being alone. And now, this… this pretentious performance? The audacity!

She slammed the paper down on the table, the sharp sound drawing a librarian’s disapproving glance. Amelia ignored her. Every word she'd typed, every vulnerability she'd shared, now felt like a humiliation. The air seemed thick with suffocating pressure.