Gemotions

He hadn't slept well since. Every creak of the floorboards, every rustle of the leaves outside his window, sent a jolt of anxiety through him. The cheerful facade of the neighborhood, the friendly waves from the neighbors, seemed false, mocking. He knew what had happened here. He’d read the reports.

He skipped breakfast. The thought of eating made his stomach churn. He went outside, the morning sun offering no solace. He tried to focus on the garden, on the simple act of pulling weeds. But the past clung to him, a relentless shadow.

He threw the gardening tools down, his hands trembling. He couldn't do it. He turned away from the house, the walls seeming to loom over him, suffocating. He just wanted to disappear, to escape the weight of the knowledge that now bound him.