couples_therapy Prompt 36.2 - Office Romance
Would you date someone you were working with? Why or why not?
*bitter laugh* This is a stupid question to ask. Because I've already been there and done that. I will never allow myself to regret my time with Don, but I will not repeat the same mistakes I made with him. Office romances are taboo, and with good reason. They either turn into marriage and a transfer, or heartbreak and risk of a transfer. There's no ring on my finger, so guess where it landed on the spectrum. I ended up taking a leave of absence from my career because it hurt too much to see him everyday after the way things ended. All the pain, the guilt, and self-loathing bubbles over whenever I look at him. Three months later... it still does.
Things are never the same again, and unless you're fortunate, you can't even be friends. You're lucky if your former flame will talk to you, or even acknowledge you in passing. All the promises they made to you go out the window as if they meant nothing. As if you meant nothing at all.
And sometimes, the only thing you can do is pack up your desk and go back to the place you came from. Because you can handle the disrespect, the eyes on you, the expectation of failure... but to become invisible to the person who told you once that they loved you? That becomes unbearable.
"But when you're standing at a crossroad, there's a choice you gotta make. I guess it's gonna have to hurt. I guess I'm gonna have to cry and let go of some things I've loved to get to the other side. I guess it's gonna break me down like falling when you try to fly. It's sad, but sometimes moving on with the rest of your life starts with goodbye."
I just wish it wasn't so damn hard.
*bitter laugh* This is a stupid question to ask. Because I've already been there and done that. I will never allow myself to regret my time with Don, but I will not repeat the same mistakes I made with him. Office romances are taboo, and with good reason. They either turn into marriage and a transfer, or heartbreak and risk of a transfer. There's no ring on my finger, so guess where it landed on the spectrum. I ended up taking a leave of absence from my career because it hurt too much to see him everyday after the way things ended. All the pain, the guilt, and self-loathing bubbles over whenever I look at him. Three months later... it still does.
Things are never the same again, and unless you're fortunate, you can't even be friends. You're lucky if your former flame will talk to you, or even acknowledge you in passing. All the promises they made to you go out the window as if they meant nothing. As if you meant nothing at all.
And sometimes, the only thing you can do is pack up your desk and go back to the place you came from. Because you can handle the disrespect, the eyes on you, the expectation of failure... but to become invisible to the person who told you once that they loved you? That becomes unbearable.
"But when you're standing at a crossroad, there's a choice you gotta make. I guess it's gonna have to hurt. I guess I'm gonna have to cry and let go of some things I've loved to get to the other side. I guess it's gonna break me down like falling when you try to fly. It's sad, but sometimes moving on with the rest of your life starts with goodbye."
I just wish it wasn't so damn hard.