Annoy

"No," Elias whispered, standing up. "It is the slow, methodical erosion of another person's sanity. It is a whistle that doesn't know its own tune. It is gum that sounds like a wet boot in a swamp. It is the destruction of a three-thousand-dollar hairspring."

In the following story, the theme of "annoy" is explored through the friction between two contrasting characters in a quiet, high-stakes environment. The Audition "No," Elias whispered, standing up

Toby looked at the floor, then back at Elias, his eyes wide. "I... I can help find it? I have a magnet!" It is gum that sounds like a wet boot in a swamp

Elias closed his eyes, counting to ten. A magnet on a mechanical watch was like a flamethrower in a library. "Just... go to lunch, Toby. For three hours." counting to ten.

Elias gripped his tweezers tighter. Focus, he told himself. He lowered the hairspring into place. Wheeze-puff. Wheeze-puff.