Returning to work felt like stepping into a world that was no longer familiar.
The elevator ride to my floor was silent. Too silent. I could feel the weight of eyes on me before the doors even opened.
There was a kind of stillness in the air when I walked out, the kind that followed a storm but never quite cleared the debris.
People looked up from their screens, some glanced and quickly turned away, others pretended not to see me at all.
Not one person said a word.
Not even the ones who used to greet me in passing, who used to share smiles or small laughs in the break room. Not even the ones who, in the worst moments, tried to make things feel normal.
I clutched the handle of my bag tighter, back straight, chin up, willing my feet to keep moving.
I took my seat in the small cubicle, my neighbor, Kunal, shifting away like I was a plague he needed to avoid.
On my desk everything looked the same, but nothing felt familiar.
