She’d been sat at the egg-white desk for over five hours now. Is this what working in an office was like, she wondered, so quiet, so… mundane?

Christine weaved the biro through the fingers of her left hand, squinting really hard at the screen and hoping she looked busy.

Everyone else was so settled, burrowed into their own worlds amongst the mounds of paperwork on their desks. It was impossible to catch anyone’s eye - you could hardly see them around Mount Files.

Christine took a deep breath, drumming her nails against her desktop, which was sparse by comparison.

Maybe she should go to the kitchens for the umpteenth time? Make another pot of coffee? It takes six and a half minutes - she’d timed it earlier, counting the seconds as they dribbled by on the clock above the door.

Spinning in her chair, Christine lined up her route, snaking past Karen’s desk and then left into the pokey kitchenette when you could stand in the centre and touch both walls.

Coffee would help to steady her nerves, Christine decided, heels soundless on the carpet. She would drink coffee and she would fit into this office.

Because nothing was worse than sticking out.