Gemotions

The silence, broken only by the occasional groan of the elevator shaft, allowed Daniel to sink into the past. He thought of his childhood home, the sound of his mother humming in the kitchen. He thought of the smell of her cooking, the comforting weight of her presence.

"This is so boring," Brenda, his coworker, stated flatly, breaking the spell.

He didn't respond. He focused instead on the memory of his father's gentle laugh and the shared laughter that filled the house. He felt a sharp pang of missing all of that. He remembered the feeling of safety and security that had surrounded him then.

He closed his eyes, the image of his family home momentarily blotting out the claustrophobic reality of the elevator. He felt a deep longing for a comfort he couldn't quite name.