They say that your life flashes before your eyes when you're about to die. They don't tell you that the same flashes can occur when encountered by the news of something that shakes the foundation to everything you thought was true. You don't get the full surround sound, but every moment that mattered suddenly comes up, and drowns you with this giant tsunami of memories ready to crush you to death.
It starts off with the retreating tide, being chased away by a single statement of utter disbelief: He was always kind to me. Then instead of pushing it all away, your thoughts chase after it, trying to rationalize why they are wrong and you aren'