Gemotions

The attic felt like a tomb, the air heavy with the ghosts of the past. David, a man of logic and reason, found himself overwhelmed by the tangible remnants of lives lived. He discovered a box of toys, a dusty teddy bear with one button eye missing, a collection of well-worn model cars.

He picked up the teddy bear, its worn fur soft against his fingers. He imagined a child, clutching this bear. A knot formed in his stomach, a physical manifestation of his distress. He couldn’t look at the toys. His eyes started to water.

He needed to breathe, to escape the suffocating weight of these forgotten lives. He backed away from the box, his hands outstretched, as if warding off a blow. He hurried out the door.