My father was critically ill, and the doctor said I needed to sign the surgical consent form before they could operate. I immediately submitted a leave request. Pointing to the critical condition notice attached to my request in the HR portal, I told my boyfriend, Derek Walsh, "My dad is dying. The hospital says he needs surgery within 1 hour. I need to take time off and get to the hospital."   He rejected the request without even opening the attachment. "Emily, the annual company retreat is this afternoon, and there is still prep work to finish. If I approve your last-minute leave request, won't everyone say I'm playing favorites?"   His female best friend, Megan Price, laughed beside him. "You're not making this up just because you don't want to go to the company retreat, are you?"   But I had finished all my work days ago. Before I could argue, Derek stood and patted Megan on the shoulder.   "Didn't you say you had a salon appointment? Go on. I'll approve your leave. Just dump the venue work on Emily. Even if her father is dying, I'm sure he'll rest easy once he's gone, knowing how hard his daughter is working for the company."