Gemotions

The office air conditioning hummed, a low, consistent drone that seemed to mirror the emptiness of the day. Michael sat at his desk, staring blankly at the spreadsheet on his screen. The deadline had passed and he felt nothing. He felt quite… flat. He was supposed to send his boss a status update. He should do it.

His fingers moved with effort. He meant to send the usual report. Instead, he found himself typing a simple, *Hope your day is going well.* He hit send. It pinged, a little alarm. He stared at the screen and he knew he made a mistake. The message was meant for his wife.

The reply was not from his boss. The response was a simple question. “You too?” Michael deleted the email immediately. He closed his eyes. He slowly began to type the email he was supposed to send.