Gemotions

The apartment felt like a tomb. Sunlight, usually a welcome guest, seemed to actively avoid the grimy windows. Elias shuffled through the mail, barely registering the bills and junk flyers. He’d barely left the house in a week, the fridge slowly emptying, the dishes piling up in the sink. The only sounds were the incessant hum of the refrigerator and the low thrumming in his head. Then, a drawing arrived from his niece, Lily. A stick figure, a smiling sun, and… a creature he hadn't thought about in decades. Barnaby, a patchwork rabbit with mismatched button eyes.

“What’s this, Lily-bug?” he managed, the words thick with disuse. Lily, all bright eyes and boundless energy, beamed. "It's you and Barnaby! You're playing pirates!" Elias stared at the drawing, a cold knot forming in his stomach. He remembered Barnaby. His constant companion, the confidant in his childhood world, now resurrected in a child's crayon scrawl.