100 Words a Day 351

The office gave polite applause when they announced who had received the promotion. Anyone familiar with the group would have noticed the strained undertones. No one liked Thad. A silent groan had reverberated through the office when his named was announced. He was hard enough to work with as a colleague; everyone was dreading having him as a boss. No doubt his abrasive attitude would grow coarser and his tendency to be demeaning more pronounced. When the director ended the floor meeting his voice was replaced by the agitated hum created by numerous discussions of the implications of the promotion.