Gemotions

He stared at the box, the label written in his mother's meticulous handwriting: "Ethan's School Things." A wave of feeling hit him with a powerful force. It was unexpected. He had gone into the attic hoping to find some old baseball cards, not a time capsule.

He picked up a drawing of a rocket ship, the paper brittle with age. He flipped through a stack of book reports, the book titles themselves bringing back vivid memories. He felt a sudden, sharp ache behind his eyes.

He sank onto a nearby trunk, the breath catching in his throat. He saw his mother's face in his mind, her smile, the way she would look at him. He never knew. He was deeply and utterly caught off guard.