Gemotions

The air in the IT department felt thick, stagnant. Liam dragged his feet as he walked down the hall, the soles of his shoes slapping softly against the linoleum. The new role in human resources was a move upwards on the company’s internal structure, supposedly, but it felt more like a demotion. He much preferred fixing servers to people.

He picked at a loose thread on his sweater. It seemed to embody his mood – unraveling, fraying at the edges. His fingers were already stained with ink from a leaky pen, and he hated it.

"Liam, good to see you!" Sarah, from HR, bounced up to him, her smile wide and artificial. "Ready to start?" Liam forced a smile back, but the muscles in his face felt stiff and unresponsive.