Gemotions

The new construction felt like a personal intrusion. Thomas, already a creature of habit, found his schedule completely disrupted. He found himself avoiding the front of his house, ashamed of being seen. He started taking the long way around to the grocery store, just to avoid the workers and the noise.

He could feel a cold sweat clinging to his skin whenever he stepped outside. Even the familiar scent of his garden now felt tainted, somehow. He began to sleep with a lamp on, unable to bear the darkness.

He kept replaying his encounters with the new neighbors, trying to decipher their intentions, their motives. He had always been a solitary man, and the sudden influx of strangers felt like a violation of his privacy.