Gemotions

The photograph, discovered in a forgotten drawer, depicted his uncle in a military uniform, arm-in-arm with a man. His uncle had always told stories of glorious combat, of comradeship forged in the fires of war. The photograph told a different story.

He was silent. He spent all his time alone, watching the world through the windows of his house, and only coming out when he was forced to. He couldn’t look the people in his life in the eye.

He stared at the photo, a sick feeling churning in his stomach. The words, the stories, the entire narrative of his uncle’s heroism – they all felt hollow now, tainted by a truth he couldn’t ignore.