Gemotions

The sunlight was too bright, the laughter too loud. Michael felt a slow burn behind his eyes, a familiar throb of discomfort. Lily, his niece, chattered excitedly about her friend, a feathered thing she called "Sparklewing." He wanted to scream, to lash out. He felt trapped in the suffocating sweetness of it all.

He found himself pacing the house, his steps heavy and agitated. He’d seen the drawings, the endless parade of the winged anomaly. He hated the way it seemed to hover just beyond his grasp, a mocking reminder of something he had desperately tried to bury. He went outside, unable to stand the confinement any longer.