Content warning: this story contains moderately intense BDSM themes.
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I'm a schedule-oriented kind of person. I just don't feel comfortable unless I have a list of things to do in my head in the mornings.
For the last five months the routine has been the same during the week.
At 5:00 AM, I'll wake up, eat breakfast, and head over to my local gym. Then I'll work out for about forty minutes, shower, get dressed and leave for work so I can get there by 7:00.
I do my job at the insurance company, keeping focused on my tasks and doing the best I can until 12, when I take an hour lunch break. Then it's back on the grind until 4 PM, though sometimes later if one of my coworkers needs help with something.
Once I get home I cook myself dinner, do the dishes, indulge in some TV or a book, then brush my teeth and do my skin care routine before I go to bed at 10 PM.
Wash, rinse, and repeat. Day in and day out.
I allow myself to have a little more freedom on the weekends, but still want a rough idea of what I want to do each day. I usually feel lazy and unmotivated if I'm just going with the flow.
At 24, my life is pretty damn great. I have a good job, an apartment of my own, a good body, and a caring family that supported me on my journey into adulthood.
I made it to where I am at today because of my hard work and dedication. I've moved out to a different state and living on my own, a luxury not a lot of people my age have. But I never want to get complacent. I always want to improve, always want to better myself. It's something I keep in mind at all times. It's what makes me want to stick to my schedule and go the extra mile.
Every single day.
*****
This particular day was a Friday, and everything was going according to schedule. I had a challenging leg day in the morning, got to work, did my job, and was anxiously waiting for the meeting that happened every Friday. This one was special because after the meeting my supervisor Jared was announcing over the company email who would get a promotion I'd been eyeing for a couple months.
I had only been at my company for half a year, but I had more than proven my worth. I worked hard, was friendly with everyone, and received nothing but praise from my superiors. I don't want to act full of myself, but by all accounts I appeared to be the clear choice for the role.
Still, it's not like I felt entitled to it. It didn't really matter, anyway.
So...why was I starting to get nervous?
I paid attention and took notes like I always did, but felt myself get a little antsy as the minutes ticked by. At long last it finally ended and we returned to our desks. I still worked, but every minute or so I looked at my work email to see if the announcement was sent out.
I felt like my heart skipped when I finally got the notification. Excitedly I opened it up expecting to see Colton Bishop looking back at me from the screen.
I didn't see it, though.
I read through the email and saw that Jared had actually given the promotion to my coworker Layla.
Well...I guess that made sense. Layla had been working here for almost a year longer than me. She was smart, likable, and worked diligently. Layla was a good fit for the job. It was a bit disappointing, but I knew that I would just have to wait for another chance.
Still, during that last hour or so of work intrusive thoughts kept creeping up.
Why didn't I get that promotion? Did I do something wrong? Did I not work hard enough?
