Gemotions

The email arrived unexpectedly, a simple subject line: "Your Childhood Home." He felt a jolt of electricity run through him. He clicked the link, his heart pounding in his chest. A photograph of the front of the house filled the screen, and he felt a knot form in his stomach.

He hadn't seen the house in years. Now, here it was, meticulously manicured, freshly painted. He felt his jaw drop slightly, and a sound he couldn't quite identify – a cross between a gasp and a whimper – escaped his lips.

He read the description, a sterile recitation of square footage and amenities. But he saw past the real estate jargon. He saw the ghosts of his childhood, running wild in the yard, shouting with laughter, creating a world only he could now truly see. He suddenly felt a desperate desire to own it again, to reclaim that lost time.