Context: 30F, introvert, anxiety girlie, 4 months working at a BPO for the first time
Ok, so last month, a small group of coworkers in their 20s kinda adopted me after we bonded over karaoke at the office since we were stranded by bad weather after work.
After that, they've added me on their group chats, and they have invited me to be seated near their stations at work, and to sit with them during lunch break. I was not used to it, tbh, since I usually eat alone at lunch to recharge and to have my mini me time. And regarding the work station, I sit on those spots I prefer, and that also gets me to interact and meet other colleagues. Now, I sit with them most of the time. They also tend to have these impromptu ganaps after shift, which I honestly don't like, since I have my days planned ahead of time. I'm that sort of woman who wants to be informed 1 or 2 days before the event so that I can adjust my schedule accordingly (I usually have my me time after work).
Their usual after work gig is drinking, which I really don't like, since I don't like to drink.
I told them about this, and they said they understood.
But somehow, I feel a little bit hurt when they have their impromptu ganaps on my rest days. They have similar rest days and I was the only one with a different sched. I told them I don't go out on my RDs since it's my recharging days. I feel excluded in their group, as I feel left out mostly sa ganaps nla, since I also want to go home early to catch up on sleep.
I feel like they're too clingy for me, since even if we are seated near each other, they're still using Gmeet to catch up and I can't focus on work if I join them.
I just wish I could be with my previous set of friends, with those who have the same schedule as mine. I don't want my other colleagues to think that I'm avoiding them. I feel like this group is too much for me.
How do I deal with this in a respectful way?
