Gemotions

The silence in the cramped attic felt suffocating. He’d volunteered to help his sister clear out the family home, a task he was dreading. Memories, like dust motes, swirled around him, triggering an uncomfortable familiarity. He hadn't been back in this house since his father passed. His niece, Olivia, had been tasked with sorting through old drawings. She held one up, her face alight. "Uncle Ben, look! This is what the monster in my closet looks like." It was a crude sketch, but immediately recognizable. The creature was tall, with a crooked smile and long, spidery fingers. He knew it well. It was Snuggles, the monster he'd confided in as a child. He tried to act casual, but his throat felt constricted.