Gemotions

The laboratory air was heavy with the sterile scent of chemicals. The fluorescent lights hummed. The lab coats, crisp and white, felt like the only clean thing in the room to Charles.

He had been assigned to work alongside a chemist whose habit of leaving half-eaten lunches on the bench was the stuff of legend. Charles tried to ignore the stench. He kept his distance.

He examined the equipment. The beakers and tubes looked to have seen better days. He scrubbed his hands raw, feeling as though the grime he sensed was not visible. He wanted to sanitize the whole workspace. He wanted to escape.

He avoided his colleague’s gaze.