Gemotions

Rain lashed against the windows, mirroring the storm brewing inside Daniel. The funeral was last week. His brother. Gone. He felt like the world was spinning. He had retreated to his sister’s house, needing a quiet place, a refuge from the crushing weight.

His sister's daughter, eight-year-old Chloe, was sitting at the kitchen table, her brow furrowed in concentration. She looked up, offering a drawing. It was a cartoonish figure with feathery wings and a mischievous smile. “This is Flicker,” Chloe announced. “He says he misses you.”

Daniel felt a sudden, inexplicable shiver. Flicker was his imaginary friend, a confidante during his own childhood, a creature of light and laughter he hadn't thought about in decades. He swallowed hard. The sketch felt like a message, a cruel reminder of what was missing.

“He… does, does he?” Daniel rasped, his throat tight. Chloe nodded, oblivious to the turmoil her drawing had unleashed, and went back to coloring.