Gemotions

"Your essay, 'The Weight of Water,' will be featured in the next issue!" The notification popped up on Amelia's phone, startling her. She almost dropped her coffee. She’d written that essay in college, the one about the summer she worked at a swimming pool. The essay was… fine. But now, it was a centerpiece? She pinched the bridge of her nose.

She navigated to the website. The layout was sleek and polished, the photos vibrant and inspiring. Her essay, she realized, had been completely reorganized, polished, and repackaged for wider consumption. It was a stranger's version of her story. She kept re-reading the introduction, which had been rewritten and was now far more grand and sweeping. A chill ran down her spine. The whole thing felt… off.