“How do you always know what I’m thinking?”

I glance across the table and took a deep breath. I already had a response planned out, and John’s response played in my mind. I’d already experienced the conversation before it happened. Next, he was going to get up and pull a salad out of the fridge, and of course complain about the diet his girlfriend put him on.

“I understand that she wants to be healthy, I get it,” he plopped back down and took another sip of his coffee, “but I can only eat so much salad in a week before I lose it.”

Once our lunch break was over, our boss was going to come into the office with some bad news—mandatory overtime until the holidays were over. Everyone’s mood drops, talk of the Christmas party seem like a distant memory, and the long night feels even longer as we all drive home.

I could only sit in the break room and dread the next few hours. Others complain about the terrifying unknown, meanwhile I dread all the things I know.

Surely enough, the day turned sour as the sun started to set. Workers cleaned off their desks and sighed in disappointment, filing out the door once the sun had disappeared from the sky.

“Jan.”

A deep voice, belonging to my boss, startled me out of my thoughts. My brain quit working as I turned around, slowly realizing that this was new. And terrifying.

“Mr. Galloway?” I tried to keep my voice calm. Despite the horrible news he’d just conveyed not too long ago, he seemed to be in high spirits. I was still disoriented.

“I know it’s short notice, but I was hoping you could help me out a little longer,” he swallowed and pointed toward his office. “With overtime pay, of course. I just need some advice.”

“Advice?” I raised my eyebrows. I was not just curious, I was intrigued. This was new. Almost exciting. To experience something I didn’t know would occur hadn’t happened since childhood.

When I realized Mr. Galloway was staring at me in anticipation, I fumbled over my words once again. “Of course. Nothing exciting is waiting for me at home.”

The smile on his face was a little different, softer than I as used to, and I started to feel refreshed.

Day after day, week after week, when it came to Mr. Galloway, everything was new. Unpredictable. Outside of work, he always managed to surprise me. Overtime was almost fun as long as he was still in the office. I was addicted to the unknown, and for one reason or another, Mr. Galloway was my gateway into it.