Mina could tell something was off the moment she stepped into the office. It wasn't anything dramatic, just that feeling, like walking into a room where someone had recently argued and the air hadn't recovered yet.
Isaac Henley wasn't exactly a warm man, but he was consistent. His calm had rhythm. You could rely on it. Today, though, you could feel he was sharper. No, he'd been this way since the puddle incident.
He'd passed her earlier near the elevators.
"Good morning, sir," she'd said, bright as usual.
"Morning." That was all. No eye contact. No nod. Not even that polite half-smile that meant acknowledged. Just a word, efficient and dismissive, before he walked away.
Now, hours later, she caught herself replaying it like a fool. Maybe he was just busy. Maybe she messed something up again.
"Mina," Annie whispered from the next desk. "He's in one of those moods again, huh?"
Mina tried to laugh it off. "Maybe it's just Monday??"
