Gemotions

The fluorescent lights of the cubicle farm seemed to mock Eleanor. The salary comparison, accidentally left open on the communal printer, revealed the truth. Ben, barely a year out of school, was earning more. A deep, unsettling tremor shook her.

She began to “accidentally” misfile Ben’s paperwork, creating a cascade of minor problems for him. The satisfaction of watching him scramble to fix them was a strange comfort.

During lunch, she would loudly critique Ben’s work in front of others, dissecting his errors with meticulous precision. He grew visibly tense whenever she approached.