From: Research Support Team
Subject: Notice Regarding Employment Contract
He clicked.
Due to research schedule adjustments and internal review, this month’s salary payment will be temporarily withheld. Further details will be provided at a later date.
Favez closed the email.
Opened it again.
Closed it again.
The sentence didn’t change.
Neither did its meaning.
There was one attachment.
[ Employment_Contract_Changes.pdf ]
The cursor hovered over the file name.
He didn’t click.
He couldn’t.
Reading it wouldn’t change anything.
Two months until his visa expired.
Ten days until his mother’s hospital payment was due.
Favez shut the inbox and stood up.
The lab was strangely crowded today.
Normally, people would be scattered—out running experiments, in meetings, in the hallway.
But now, everyone was sitting at their desks.
Someone glanced at Favez, then looked away.
Someone stared at their monitor like it was the only safe place to look.
No one spoke to him.
No greeting.
No jokes.
No, Want coffee?
Favez sat down and turned on his computer.
The login screen appeared—then vanished.
And then… nothing.
No task.
No message.
No work handed to him.
“Mina.”
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The professor entered the lab, a thick stack of papers in his hand.
“This week’s report still hasn’t come in.”
Mina’s face drained of color.
“I… I was—”
“How long am I supposed to wait?”
It wasn’t a question.
It was pressure.
Mina bit her lip.
“I’ll upload it today.”
“Today?”
The professor checked his watch.
“It’s already eleven-thirty.”
Mina couldn’t answer.
The professor didn’t wait for one.
He turned and walked out.
Only after the door closed did Mina’s hands begin to shake.
Mina stayed at her desk through lunch.
She was revising the report.
Deleting a sentence.
Rewriting it.
Deleting it again.
Her hands wouldn’t stop trembling.
Someone asked, “Want to go with us?”
Mina shook her head.
“I’m fine. Go ahead.”
The lab went quiet.
Mina looked up.
Her eyes met Favez’s.
Two seconds of stillness.
Favez said nothing.
Mina said nothing.
Then they both turned back to their screens.
But Favez understood.
There had been a question in her eyes.
You too?
The professor appeared again.
“Is it done?”
Mina handed over the file.
Her hand shook, but she managed to click the mouse anyway.
The professor flipped through the first page.
He didn’t even glance at the second.
“This isn’t what I intended,” he said.
“It’s lacking.”
Then he dropped another stack of documents on the desk.
Thud.
“By tomorrow morning.”
Mina’s shoulders visibly flinched.
Favez was watching.
As the professor left, he added—
“Do it properly this time.”
The door closed.
Mina lowered her head.
She didn’t move.
Favez’s phone vibrated.
Mom.
He didn’t answer.
He couldn’t.
How was he supposed to respond to Did you send the money?
The vibration stopped.
A text came in.
Are you okay?
Favez stared at the screen.
Then turned the phone face down.
A lab notice was posted.
Due to research schedule restructuring, certain members’ roles may change.
No names were listed.
But everyone understood anyway.
Who would disappear.
Who would remain.
Favez sat at his desk.
His monitor was off.
No one had given him work all day.
Across from him, Mina was still rewriting the report.
The clock passed eight, but she didn’t leave.
Favez looked at her.
Mina glanced up and looked back.
Neither of them spoke.
But both of them knew.
This silence wasn’t protecting them.
It was breaking them—slowly, together.
Back at his place, Favez opened the transfer app.
This month’s payment: ?0
He started calculating exchange rates.
Then deleted it.
What did exchange rates matter
when there was nothing to send?
His mother messaged again.
I was worried. You didn’t pick up. Are you okay?
Favez stared for a long time.
Then typed a short reply.
Please wait just a little longer.
Send.
He set the phone down and stared at the ceiling.
Was Mina writing the same kind of sentence right now?
Asking someone—
Please wait a little longer.
In the lab, the lights were turning off one by one.
In the darkness of his room, Favez made a decision.
Tomorrow, he would speak to Mina.
He couldn’t endure this alone anymore.
He couldn’t stay silent anymore.
Like the lab lights shutting down completely,
his options were starting to run out.
They can’t wait any longer.
The moment someone speaks,
the balance of this lab will begin to break.
About leverage.
About teaching someone how expensive silence can be.
No accusations.
No confrontations.
Deadlines.
Unspoken understanding.
but because they know speaking alone changes nothing.
people begin to choose.
If this episode felt uncomfortably realistic,
that discomfort is part of the story.