Gemotions

Claire stared at the message, a chill spreading through her. “Gary Walsh sent you a friend request.” Gary. The boy who had made her teenage years a torment. She recalled the constant belittling, the deliberate exclusion, the slow erosion of her self-esteem.

The room around her seemed to shrink. She felt the sudden urge to run, to hide. The cheerful music from the radio in the other room felt like a cruel mockery.

She took a deep breath, fighting against the suffocating weight in her chest. A small, vindictive part of her hoped he had failed.