Gemotions

He hadn't been able to concentrate on his work lately. John stared at the computer screen, the words blurring before his eyes. His boss had called him in for a performance review, and the words "lackluster performance" still echoed in his mind. He felt… adrift.

One evening, he was surfing the web. A pop-up ad for local history intrigued him. He clicked the link, and was soon engrossed in tales of his neighborhood. He typed in his address, expecting local trivia, but instead, he found an article about the house.

It detailed a hostage situation, several decades before. The house, his safe haven, had been a prison. His throat constricted. He stood up abruptly and walked to the window, the darkness outside seeming to press in on him.