Gemotions

He stared at the blank TV screen, the muted glow reflecting in his vacant eyes. His brother, Liam, had just told their father that he was becoming a Buddhist. Dad, predictably, had lost it. James had retreated, finding solace in the routine of the remote control. The silence in the living room was deafening, broken only by the sharp, angry pronouncements of his father from his bedroom. He felt his chest constrict, the air seeming thinner, as if someone had tightened a vise around his ribs. He felt a deep, twisting pit in his stomach, a gnawing emptiness that wouldn’t be filled. He absentmindedly chewed on the inside of his cheek, a familiar self-soothing habit.