Based on the narrative flow and the conflict set up in the image, here is a full, long text to complete the story:
…saying I had nothing booked, and that since I didn’t have children, my holiday wasn’t as “critical” as hers. She insisted that I could just take my leave in January instead. I was stunned by her audacity. It felt incredibly intrusive for her to assume she knew my plans or the value of my personal time.
I took a deep breath and firmly told her, “Sally, my plans are finalized, and they involve my family. Whether I have flight tickets or plan to stay home is irrelevant; I followed protocol, booked this months ago, and I am not swapping.”
She didn’t take it well. She actually started crying right there in the office, loudly complaining to anyone who would listen that I was “ruining her kids’ Christmas” and that I was being selfish. It got so uncomfortable that other coworkers started looking over. I realized this wasn’t going to end if I just kept saying no, so I walked straight to our manager’s office.
I explained the situation—that I had requested my leave well in advance as per policy, and that I was now being harassed and guilt-tripped to give it up because of someone else’s lack of planning. Thankfully, my manager, who values the fact that I’ve covered holidays for the past five years, shut it down immediately. He called Sally in and told her explicitly that the schedule was set, my leave was approved, and that harassment regarding the schedule would not be tolerated. He reminded her that she had waited until the last minute to request dates that were already blocked out.
Sally gave me the cold shoulder for the next few weeks, acting like a victim and making snide comments under her breath, but I refused to feel guilty. I went on my family trip, reconnected with relatives I hadn’t seen in years, and had the most relaxing, wonderful Christmas I’ve had in a decade.
When I returned in January, Sally was still chilly, but she eventually got over it. The experience taught me a valuable lesson: You don’t owe anyone an explanation for your time off. “No” is a complete sentence, and lack of planning on their part does not constitute an emergency on yours. I’m glad I stood my ground.
