Gemotions

He was trying not to think about the phone call, the one he had been dreading all day. He had been putting it off, hoping the anxiety would pass. Then, he saw it. The bear he had called "Stuffy".

His breath caught in his throat. He felt lightheaded. His palms were slick with sweat. He swallowed hard. It was just a bear, but it was also a reminder of happier times, times that felt so very far away. He felt the cold seep into his bones.

“How much?” he asked, his voice sounding strangely foreign to his own ears. The elderly woman running the sale squinted at him over her glasses. He felt like he would break down.