Gemotions

"It's just a building, Dad," his daughter had said, her voice softening slightly. "It's not a person." But Leo couldn't explain how it felt, the way his gut twisted with each loud crash.

He stood in silence, watching the excavator's teeth tear through the roof. He kept his jaw tight, his eyes fixed on the scene. His legs felt shaky beneath him, as if the ground itself was shifting and unstable.

The air was thick with the dust of the past. He could almost feel his younger self, a boy with scraped knees and a hopeful heart, running through the rooms, forever preserved, now, in the dust and debris. He rubbed his eyes, trying to clear the blurring world.