The change was small enough that Harvey almost missed it.
He noticed it the next morning when he reached the office and found his desk already organized, the way he always left it. His bag went under the chair. His jacket over the backrest. Everything in place.
Nothing felt off.
He opened his laptop and started the day like any other. A short list of tasks waited in his inbox. One clarification from David. A follow up from a client team. Nothing urgent.
Harvey worked through them carefully, line by line, without rushing.
Jake passed by around midmorning, coffee in hand.
"You're in early," Jake said.
"Couldn't sleep."
Jake nodded. "Project brain."
"Something like that."
Jake lingered for a moment, then moved on. No joke this time. No comment.
Laura did not appear.
That was the second day in a row.
Harvey noticed, then went back to his screen.
By the time lunch came around, he realized Emily had not stopped by his desk. That was unusual, but not enough to mean anything. She was busy sometimes. He stood and headed toward the break area on his own.
Emily was already there.
She sat at a different table, closer to the window. Alone. Her lunch was open, halfway eaten.
Harvey hesitated for half a second, then walked over.
"Mind if I sit?"
She looked up and smiled. "Not at all."
He sat across from her. The table felt slightly smaller than the one they usually used.
They ate quietly at first.
Emily talked about her day, a short complaint about a meeting that ran longer than necessary. Harvey listened and nodded. He offered a comment when it fit. The conversation stayed light.
At no point did she mention work.
At no point did she ask how his project was going.
Harvey noticed this, the way he noticed the hum of the refrigerator at home. Present, but easy to ignore.
When lunch ended, Emily checked her phone.
"I've got a call in a few," she said. "I'll head up now."
"Okay."
She stood and adjusted her bag. "See you later."
"Yeah."
She left without waiting for him to finish eating.
Harvey stayed seated for a moment after she was gone, then threw his trash away and returned to his desk.
The afternoon passed without friction.
David sent a short message thanking the team for keeping timelines clean. No names were mentioned. Jake forwarded Harvey a summary he had already read. Harvey made a small correction and sent it back.
Nothing dramatic happened.
Late in the afternoon, as Harvey reviewed a spreadsheet, he paused on a column that did not need further attention. He scrolled up, then down, without changing anything.
The feeling came quietly, without warning.
Not urgency. Not fear.
Just a moment where the room seemed to settle around him.
The words appeared without sound.
[Decision point detected]
Harvey did not move.
He read it once, then looked back at the spreadsheet. The words stayed for a few seconds, then disappeared.
No outcome followed.
He exhaled slowly and continued working.
When the workday ended, Harvey packed up and headed toward the elevator. Emily was not waiting near the exit this time. That did not surprise him.
Outside, the air was warmer than it had been in the morning. The sky was still light.
Halfway home, his phone buzzed.
*Heading out with some coworkers,* Emily messaged. *Talk later.*
Harvey stared at the screen longer than necessary.
*Okay,* he typed back.
He put the phone in his pocket and kept walking.
At home, he cooked something simple and ate sitting down. He washed the dishes immediately after, not wanting to leave anything unfinished.
The evening stretched without shape.
He checked his phone once. No new messages.
Later, while brushing his teeth, he caught his reflection in the mirror. He looked the same. Tired, maybe, but nothing out of the ordinary.
He went to bed earlier than usual.
Sleep did not come right away.
When it did, it came without dreams.
The next day followed a similar pattern.
Emily greeted him in the hallway with a smile. They talked briefly. She mentioned the coworkers she had gone out with. He listened. He did not ask questions.
At lunch, they sat together again. Same table as the day before. The conversation stayed easy, polite, surface level.
Emily checked the time halfway through.
"I should get back," she said. "I've got a thing at two."
"Alright."
She stood and left with a small wave.
Harvey finished his lunch alone.
Back at his desk, he worked until the end of the day without interruption. No system messages appeared. No emails demanded attention.
When he left the office, the sky had darkened.
He walked home thinking about nothing in particular.
Later that night, his phone buzzed.
*Did you eat?* Emily asked.
*Yeah,* Harvey replied. *You?*
*Just did.*
A pause.
*Long day.*
Harvey typed, deleted, then typed again.
*Same.*
Emily responded with a thumbs up emoji.
Harvey set the phone down.
Nothing was wrong.
That was the part that stayed with him.
Nothing had ended. Nothing had been taken away. No doors had closed.
Still, as he turned off the light and lay back in bed, he found himself staring at the ceiling longer than usual, listening to the quiet settle around him.
The day had moved forward.
So had something else.
He just did not know what it was yet.