"Toby," Elias said, turning slowly in his swivel chair. "Do you know what 'annoy' means?"

Toby stopped mid-whistle, his cleaning rag frozen. "Uh, like when my sister hides my phone?"

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

Elias put his forehead against the floor. Some days, the world was just one giant, persistent itch.

Toby looked at the floor, then back at Elias, his eyes wide. "I... I can help find it? I have a magnet!"

Elias lived for silence. As a professional watchmaker, his world was measured in microns and the nearly imperceptible snick-snick of escapement wheels. He was currently in the final hour of restoring a 19th-century Breguet, a piece of mechanical poetry so delicate that a heavy sneeze could ruin a week's work. Then came the whistling.

"Almost, Mr. E!" Toby chirped, followed by a wet, clicking sound as he popped a piece of gum. "Just making sure I get into the nooks. And the crannies. Can't forget the crannies." Snap.

Annoy

"Toby," Elias said, turning slowly in his swivel chair. "Do you know what 'annoy' means?"

Toby stopped mid-whistle, his cleaning rag frozen. "Uh, like when my sister hides my phone?" "Toby," Elias said, turning slowly in his swivel chair

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

Elias put his forehead against the floor. Some days, the world was just one giant, persistent itch. Wheeze-puff

Toby looked at the floor, then back at Elias, his eyes wide. "I... I can help find it? I have a magnet!"

Elias lived for silence. As a professional watchmaker, his world was measured in microns and the nearly imperceptible snick-snick of escapement wheels. He was currently in the final hour of restoring a 19th-century Breguet, a piece of mechanical poetry so delicate that a heavy sneeze could ruin a week's work. Then came the whistling.

"Almost, Mr. E!" Toby chirped, followed by a wet, clicking sound as he popped a piece of gum. "Just making sure I get into the nooks. And the crannies. Can't forget the crannies." Snap.