Gemotions

The chipped mug felt alien in Leo's hands. He’d sworn he drank tea from this very cup at the library that afternoon, yet now, the memory felt…wrong. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to conjure the precise image. The clinking of the spoon, the sunlight slanting across the table, the specific shade of chamomile. All gone. He opened his eyes, and stared at the steam curling upwards. The chipped part of the rim seemed larger, more pronounced.

"You remember the librarian's cat, right?" Maya's voice jolted him. He flinched slightly.

"The what?" Leo asked, his voice strained. He felt a coldness creeping up his spine.

Maya tilted her head, her smile faltering. "The cat. That black cat that kept rubbing against the bookshelves while we were looking for that history book."

He shook his head, the sensation like his brain was a snow globe being violently shaken. "I remember the book, but… a cat? Absolutely nothing." He took a shaky sip of tea. It tasted like metal.