Gemotions

He tried to keep his face neutral, but the corners of his mouth felt like they were actively resisting. This new kid, Ben, was ridiculously enthusiastic. He’d probably never seen a real deadline in his life.

"And this is the…" Ben began, gesturing towards a complex flowchart on the wall. "The what now?"

“The problem,” Michael muttered, his voice barely audible. He gestured at the chart with a bored wave of his hand. It was the system he'd spent years perfecting, a system now, it seemed, was going to become someone else's responsibility.

Michael sat back in his chair, folding his arms. The clicking of Ben’s pen and the scratching of his pencil was enough to irritate him. He did not engage further, opting to read his emails with more interest.