Monday. Two-week break over. The coffee machine is broken in a new way, the all-hands has 47 slides, and Kai has just found a Jira ticket three months overdue with his name on it.

Tuesday. The Migration deploys to staging. It breaks in three ways simultaneously. Kai is closest to the keyboard. Priya fixes it in 47 minutes with a two-line config change. Marcus calls it synergy.

Wednesday. Kai has a scheduled 1:1 with Marcus. Marcus circles. Eventually lands the word: restructuring. No details. Just the word. Kai nods, goes back to his desk, tells Priya. Priya already knew. She's known for three weeks.

Friday. Someone brought cake for Diane's work anniversary. The monitors are all green. Nobody mentions restructuring. Kai and Priya end up at the window. Kai says something honest. It's the one exhale of the week.