It started as one of those slow afternoons where time seemed to drag its feet. The office was unusually quiet, the hum of computers replacing conversation, and the clock on the wall ticked loudly enough to feel personal. Everyone was waiting for the day to end. That was when Leo got an idea.

Leo was known for his harmless pranks. Nothing cruel, nothing embarrassing—just small jokes meant to break the monotony and make people laugh. Sticky notes on computer mice, fake meeting reminders, or switching someone’s desktop background to a picture of a confused raccoon. Simple. Innocent. Effective.

That afternoon, his target was Mark.

Mark was the kind of guy who took everything seriously. Always on time, always organized, always slightly suspicious of fun. He was respected, dependable—and completely humorless when it came to surprises. Which, of course, made him the perfect candidate.

Leo leaned over to Sarah and whispered, “Watch this. Completely harmless.”

The plan was simple. Mark had stepped away from his desk to grab coffee. Leo quietly swapped Mark’s chair with an identical one from the storage room—except this one had a barely noticeable squeak when someone sat down. Not loud. Not alarming. Just enough to be funny.

Sarah bit her lip to keep from laughing. Leo covered his mouth, shoulders shaking. It was going exactly as planned. Mark sighed, muttered something under his breath, and adjusted the chair again.

Then it happened.

As Mark leaned back slightly, the chair released a sound so perfectly timed, so absurdly loud, that it echoed across the office—not a squeak, but a long, dramatic noise that sounded suspiciously human.

Mark’s eyes widened. His face turned red. He stood up so fast the chair rolled backward. “That—was NOT—” he began, panicking.

A deep, unmistakable sound echoed once more.

For half a second, no one reacted. Then the entire office exploded into laughter. Someone dropped a pen. Another nearly fell out of their chair. Sarah laughed so hard she had tears in her eyes.

Mark stared at the chair like it had personally betrayed him. “I didn’t— I swear— I didn’t—”

Leo was laughing now too, but confusion crept in. That wasn’t part of the prank. The chair wasn’t supposed to do that.

Before anyone could explain, the chair rolled forward slightly and made the noise again—louder this time.

That’s when the realization hit.

The chair wasn’t squeaking.

There was something inside it.

The laughter stopped. People backed away. Mark jumped behind a desk. “WHY is the chair alive?” someone yelled.

Leo approached cautiously and bent down. Tucked under the seat, perfectly hidden in the frame, was a small wireless speaker—still blinking.

Everyone turned slowly toward the intern, Jake, who was standing frozen near the printer.

Jake raised his hands. “Okay. I panicked.”

It turned out Jake had overheard Leo planning the prank earlier. Wanting to “help,” he secretly added his own twist by taping a Bluetooth speaker under the chair and setting it to play… unfortunate sound effects. He’d planned to trigger it once.

The room erupted again, this time even louder. Mark leaned against the wall, laughing despite himself. “I thought my career was over,” he said between breaths.

Leo wiped tears from his eyes. “I’ve never been so proud—and so afraid—at the same time.”

Even the manager, drawn in by the noise, couldn’t help but laugh after hearing the explanation. “I’ve been here ten years,” she said, shaking her head, “and this is the most productivity I’ve seen all week.”

The chair was retired immediately. Jake apologized. Mark accepted—with conditions. Leo promised no more pranks involving furniture.

But for the rest of the day, every time someone sat down, the room held its breath—then laughed again.