At our major tech company, which champions a \u201cwolf culture,\u201d the office is always brightly lit at 6:00 p.m. The sound of keyboard clicks echoes throughout the room, as if whoever closes their laptop first has lost the race at the starting line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leo is the only exception.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leo is a senior data analyst in our department\u2014a middle-aged man who always wears a crisp, ironed white shirt and gold-rimmed glasses. No matter how urgent the project or how pressing the boss\u2019s emails, as soon as the wall clock strikes six o\u2019clock sharp, Leo closes his laptop, picks up his gray briefcase, and smiles at his colleagues still working late, saying, \u201cSee you all tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At first, everyone gossiped about it behind his back. Some said Leo got the job through connections; others speculated that his family was wealthy; and still others maliciously wondered if he was taking on side gigs. After all, in this industry, not working overtime is practically a \u201coriginal sin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was a new intern assigned to sit next to Leo. To show my enthusiasm, I stayed until 9:00 p.m. every day. Leo, however, continued to disappear at 6:00 p.m. sharp, without fail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One day, the project reached a critical phase before launch, and the entire department was frantically racing against the clock. The boss posted in the group chat: \u201cWe must finalize the plan tonight. Thanks for all your hard work\u2014the company will cover the cost of late-night snacks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A chorus of groans filled the room as everyone opened their food delivery apps. I stole a glance at Leo next to me, thinking to myself, \u201cSurely he\u2019ll stay this time, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, the clock struck six.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leo saved his document right on time, stood up, and put on his jacket.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLeo,\u201d I finally couldn\u2019t help but call out to him, my tone tinged with the impatience and confusion typical of a young person, \u201cIt\u2019s so busy tonight, and everyone else is still here. Are you\u2026 really going to leave?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leo stopped in his tracks and turned to look at me. His gaze was calm\u2014no guilt, no irritation at being interrupted. He pointed out the window, where the evening rush hour was in full swing: a sea of cars, their red taillights forming a continuous river of traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLook,\u201d Leo said gently, \u201cthe sun has set, and the city is settling down. It\u2019s time for us to go home, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut the work isn\u2019t finished yet\u2026\u201d I muttered under my breath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWork is never-ending,\u201d Leo smiled, a kind of clarity I couldn\u2019t quite fathom hidden in the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes. \u201cBut life is your own. If you sell your soul to the company, what will you have left to love your family with, or to feel the evening breeze?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With that, he turned and stepped into the elevator. The moment the elevator doors closed, I caught a glimpse of his expression\u2014it didn\u2019t look like that of a deserter fleeing the battlefield, but rather like that of a hermit who had just completed a day of spiritual practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That night, I worked overtime until 1:00 a.m. As I dragged my weary body out of the office building, a cold breeze swept over me, and I suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of emptiness. I looked at the unread work messages on my phone and was suddenly reminded of that carefree look in Leo\u2019s eyes before he left work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In that moment, it was as if I suddenly understood something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We run frantically, thinking the finish line is a promotion, a raise, or financial freedom. But Leo had already reached the finish line long ago; he simply passed us by, then turned around and went home for dinner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The next morning, I clocked in right on time at 9:00 a.m. and walked into the office. Leo was already sitting there, brewing coffee\u2014the aroma filled the air.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGood morning,\u201d he greeted me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGood morning, Leo,\u201d I said, setting down my bag and taking a deep breath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I used to think he was an oddball, but now I realize he\u2019s the only one who\u2019s truly sober in this crazy world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That colleague who always leaves work on time isn\u2019t being irresponsible\u2014it\u2019s because he knows better than anyone else: leaving work is when life really begins.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
That Colleague Who Always Leaves on Time<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":759,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[18,19],"class_list":["post-758","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-anecdote","tag-story","tag-work"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/758","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=758"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/758\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":760,"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/758\/revisions\/760"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=758"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=758"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyrecyclebin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}