Gemotions

The digital interface glowed, mocking him. Liam had duplicated his entire program, line for line. He stared at the screen, a knot forming in his stomach, twisting and churning. He felt like he'd been punched.

Every keystroke, every hour of coding, every moment of creative energy had been stolen. The sense of violation was profound. He wanted to smash his monitor.

He wanted to confront Liam, to tear him to shreds, but instead, he deleted the file and shut down his computer, the silence of the room amplifying the hollowness inside him.