Gemotions

It happened during lunchtime. He glanced at his phone, and saw the familiar name. Mr. Evans, his English teacher, had requested to follow him on TikTok. He felt a prickly sensation crawl up his neck. A sense of something akin to victory bloomed in his chest.

He immediately started recording a series of short, overly dramatic videos about the assigned reading material. He knew how much Mr. Evans loathed teenagers' use of the platform. He imagined the teacher’s reaction as the videos began to circulate.

He filmed himself dramatically sighing, wringing his hands while reciting a particularly difficult passage. He had chosen the most abstract, confusing parts of the book. He included captions, each one more deliberately vague than the last. He hoped it would be like a persistent itch under the teacher's skin.