Relative evaluation

Before the performance review, my senior invited me out for drinks at an izakaya. Even though the review was still ahead, I was excited. It was the first time we’d be drinking together, just the two of us. But my senior insisted that even company dinners were just an extension of work, and began talking about the job. I was a bit tense, but after a few drinks, I half-jokingly, half-seriously told her that I’d lobby for a good review… even if it meant using my body.