Still Choosing You
Book 1 Chapter 6 — Scene 4: NOBODY LAUGHS AS MUCH
The office used to be louder.
Daniel noticed it on a Thursday afternoon.
Not because someone pointed it out.
Because the silence had been growing for weeks.
Small things disappeared first.
Conversations became shorter.
Lunch groups became smaller.
People returned to their desks faster.
Jokes ended sooner.
The office still functioned.
It simply felt different.
Daniel looked up from his monitor.
Across the department, everyone appeared busy.
Monitors filled with spreadsheets.
Emails remained open.
Reports sat beside keyboards.
Nobody seemed idle.
Nobody seemed relaxed either.
At eleven thirty, several employees gathered near the pantry.
Normally the group would stay there for ten or fifteen minutes.
Today it lasted less than five.
The conversation sounded practical.
Deadlines.
Reports.
Targets.
Meetings.
Nobody talked about weekend plans.
Nobody talked about holidays.
Nobody talked about anything unrelated to work.
The change felt subtle.
Yet impossible to miss once noticed.
After lunch, Daniel joined a project meeting.
Six people.
One conference room.
One hour scheduled.
The discussion began normally.
Project status.
Outstanding tasks.
Resource planning.
Progress updates.
Then the conversation shifted.
Not intentionally.
Naturally.
A team member asked a question.
"Do we know how performance reviews will be weighted now?"
The room quietened slightly.
Another employee responded.
"No idea."
Someone else added:
"They seem to be measuring everything lately."
A few smiles appeared.
None lasted.
The project manager redirected the conversation back to the agenda.
But the mood had already changed.
The question remained sitting quietly inside the room.
After the meeting ended, employees returned to their desks.
Nobody lingered.
Nobody stayed behind chatting.
Everyone seemed eager to look busy.
Or perhaps simply busy.
Daniel wasn't sure anymore.
Mid-afternoon brought another department update email.
Nothing alarming.
Nothing unexpected.
Just more reporting requirements.
More visibility.
More tracking.
More measurements.
The kind of email that would have barely registered months ago.
Now everyone opened it immediately.
Daniel noticed it happening across the office.
Screens changing.
Employees reading.
Managers forwarding messages.
Nobody wanted to be the last person aware of something.
Fear hadn't become visible yet.
Not openly.
But it had changed behavior.
That was how fear usually arrived.
Quietly.
Before anyone admitted it existed.
Near four o'clock, Daniel walked toward the printer.
Two coworkers stood nearby.
One of them laughed at something.
The sound surprised him.
Not because it was unusual.
Because he realized he hadn't heard genuine laughter in a while.
The laugh faded quickly.
The conversation returned to work almost immediately.
Targets.
Deadlines.
Reports.
The same subjects everyone seemed trapped inside lately.
When Daniel returned to his desk, Marcus was staring at his monitor.
Not working.
Just staring.
"You okay?" Daniel asked.
Marcus blinked.
"Huh?"
"You look like you're solving world peace."
A faint smile appeared.
"Feels easier than figuring out next quarter."
Daniel almost laughed.
Almost.
Instead he smiled.
Marcus smiled back.
Then both returned to work.
The moment ended there.
A few months ago, they might have continued the conversation.
Complained a little.
Joked a little.
Taken a short break.
Now neither of them did.
The work always seemed waiting.
The targets always seemed waiting.
The expectations always seemed waiting.
As evening approached, the office grew quieter still.
Not because people had left.
Because people were concentrating harder.
Or trying to.
Daniel looked around the department.
The same people.
The same desks.
The same company.
Yet something important had changed.
Nobody seemed secure anymore.
Not the strongest performers.
Not the average performers.
Not even the managers.
The uncertainty had reached everyone.
And uncertainty made people cautious.
A notification appeared on Daniel's screen.
Another performance report due next week.
He opened it automatically.
Without frustration.
Without surprise.
That almost worried him more.
The workload kept increasing.
The pressure kept increasing.
And everyone was adapting to it.
As if this was normal.
As if carrying more every month was simply part of the job now.
Daniel glanced across the office one final time.
Rows of employees worked beneath bright office lights.
Quiet.
Focused.
Careful.
Nobody looked relaxed.
Nobody looked comfortable.
Nobody looked safe.
For the first time since joining the company, Daniel understood something.
The pressure wasn't affecting one person.
It was affecting everyone.
And that somehow made it harder to ignore.
Scene-by-scene release. Continue only when the next scene is ready.