Gemotions

The spreadsheet glared back at Amelia, a brutal grid of numbers and deadlines. Her jaw ached, a tight knot clenching with every minute she spent staring at the screen. She needed to present this to the board tomorrow, and the data just wasn't adding up. Her fingers drummed a frantic rhythm on the table.

Then, Lily's drawing. It sat on her desk, a vibrant explosion of crayon colors. There, amidst the stick figures and rainbow trees, was a creature Amelia vaguely recognized: a lanky figure with mismatched limbs and an unsettlingly wide grin. It was Barnaby, her childhood companion.

Amelia sighed, a gust of air that carried with it a weary defeat. She wondered if she should let it go and pick up a puzzle to calm down. Barnaby seemed to be offering her a hand in the drawing, the way he always had when she was little and feeling overwhelmed.