"Discovery" by Sera Jonas Jakob

— ‘and that means he’s going to have such a challenging life because’—

Passenging

Not really listening

Sun on my face

Semi-rural properties chugging by

— ‘and because, of course, you are as well, I thought that’—

She rabbits on for another half sentence before

Wait

Back up

‘What did you say?’

Conflux of brows

Confounded glance

That awful prickling across my skull

‘What makes you think I am?’

Lips push together

Her voice smaller now

‘Surely I’ve mentioned it before?’

My gaze slides right back out the window

‘I mean, I’ve known for years,’ she continues

Thoughts spin round, elbowing for space

No

Can’t be right

Why is she saying this?

Later, poring over the words of those so described

An alien cosmos erupts out of the reality I thought bedded down

A strange and familiar light bathes my face

And now it is my former world which seems foreign

Sera Jonas Jakob is a writer and sound artist. She draws on her experiences as a neurodivergent woman and her background in conservation science and journalism in her creative works, examining life from the hyper-personal to the universal. She especially likes to peer into uncomfortable and unspoken spaces between interpersonal exchanges, offering the perspective of a social outsider.