Gemotions

He’d insisted on driving, just to avoid having to talk to his sister, Emily. Now, they stood at the threshold, the wind whipping at their coats. The house loomed, a monument to a life, and a grief, he was ill-equipped to handle. Thomas felt a prickling sensation behind his eyes.

Inside, the silence was deafening. He kicked a fallen branch across the floor, the sound shattering the stillness. He felt trapped, suffocated by the memories that clung to every object. Emily started listing all the things they needed to do, the tasks piling up like a mountain he had no desire to climb.

He walked into the dining room, slamming the door behind him. He didn’t want to discuss anything, not yet. Not ever, if he could help it. He just wanted to be alone.