I don't know if this even counts as a confession, really. It’s more… a feeling. Or a lack of feeling, maybe. Like, a hollow sort of thing, deep down. Anyone else ever feel that? I manage a retail store, right? And we’ve been hitting our targets. For months now. Every single month, every month, we’re crushing it, making the numbers, doing the thing. And everyone’s like, “Great job! Amazing!” and I just… smile. (A fake smile, I guess.) Because I'm happy for my team, yeah, they work so hard. But then I check the internal reports, late at night, and I see the sister branch. Our sister branch, just across town. And their numbers… they’re just not there. Week after week. And it’s so stupid, it’s not even my store. It’s not my problem, really. But I see their figures, and it’s like a punch in the gut, every time. I don’t know why. I think maybe it’s because I know the manager there. He’s… well, he’s a good guy. And he works so hard, I see him, always there, always trying. He’s like, a genuinely creative soul, always sketching in a notebook during breaks (I used to do that. Still do, sometimes, late at night, when no one sees). And I know he’s got his own… stuff. His own responsibilities, trying to make ends meet, same as me. And I just feel this… this deep, quiet ache. Like a personal failure. Mine. Even though it's NOT my failure, you know? My store is fine. We're doing great. But his isn't. And it just sits with me. This quiet, heavy weight. Like I'm somehow complicit in his struggles just by being… successful? At the same thing? I don't know. It makes me question everything. All the choices. All the practical, responsible choices I made when I should have been… doing something else. Something that fed the soul instead of just the bank account. (Which, let's be real, is still not exactly overflowing. Ha.) It’s just… bleak. Anyone else feel this kind of weird, inverted guilt? Am I the only one who feels like they’re winning, but also losing, all at the same time? It’s just… heavy. So heavy.