I have been working for the same company for 30 years.
I have never been able to break through the glass ceiling into any kind of management.
Oh, I've tried.
Many times.
But to no avail.
I was always passed by the person who was a little more educated, a little younger, a little something better than me.
And now I found myself at 60, consigned to the same job I've been doing for the last ten years, and probably will be for the next five as well, or until I retire.
And then two unexpected things happened: Our facility manager and our shop supervisor both left the company.
The facility manager position was filled immediately.
His name was Peter Wood, and like his name, he was a prick.
Nobody liked him because he was a my-way-or-the-highway kind of guy. However, the last boss was so ineffectual, Peter's strong will stood as a stark contrast to the previous boss's "don't make waves" style. In actuality, we needed a prick to set things right again.
One day Peter came walking past on one of his "inspections" and he paused in front of me.
He stood, looking at me.
"Morning," I said, mostly just trying to be courteous.
He continued looking at me, folding one arm across his chest, the other arm's hand under his chin as if thought.
"The is an open supervisor position. I have not yet seen your name."
"I've been shot down 4 times. I see no reason to make it 5.
"I believe myself to be a good judge of character. Humor me this one more time. You needn't apply, just tell me you're willing."
I looked at him, wondering what his angle was.
"As you wish," I replied.
He smiled an odd little smile.
"That's the idea," he said, walking away.
Two weeks later I found myself in his office, for an interview.
"I have no need for you to recite your qualifications; I can see people already look to you for answers.
Why were you turned down before?"
I went through the stories of how I "just missed" being promoted by those younger, smarter, prettier and, unsurprisingly, no longer with the company.
They always liked the other candidate just a little more. Every single time.
"Yet they're long gone, and I'm still here!"
I think my anger was starting to manifest itself.
"That must have been frustrating," Peter said.
"You're damn right!" I said, coming to a boil. "I mean, who's dick do I have to suck to get ahead in this place?" I blurted out.
Peter immediately stood, walked around the desk, stepped in front of me, and leaned back against his desk, his eyes boring into my soul. I thought I was done for. What he said next rocked me to the core.
"Mine."
Did he just say what I thought he said?
I sat looking at him stupidly.
He didn't say anything. I was contemplating if he really meant what he said. A million things started running through my mind. We were struggling and retirement was looming; we needed the money. I wasn't gay. This job should have been mine, and here it was, in my grasp. One little blow job...I looked up at him, he had a smirk on his face, as if he knew what I would do. I glanced at his crotch. He had a noticeable bulge, and it appeared to be growing. What would my wife say if she found out I was a cocksucker? Or my coworkers?
He stood up in front of me, moving slightly closer, swaying back and forth, as if he were fucking my mouth already.
I was frozen to my chair, unable to move. I mean, I had principles, right? What kind of self-respecting sixty year old man would suck the dick of a guy half his age just to get ahead?