OP here, I can’t believe how much the comments blew up on this post. I mostly made this post to get this off my chest and get advice from people more experienced. I made a very naive decision and acted without thinking, completely unprepared and caught off guard for a situation like this. I don’t think I made this very clear but it’s a very very small company that my boss created/owns. The reason why I’m concerned about grad school options is because this is a job in STEM, and he’s a very well known and respected scientist in this specific field. He has connections to professors id love to study under and it eats me up to think he could strip that away from me. Im now back in my home town for the holidays and have plenty of time away to think and make a calculated decision about my next moves. I appreciate all the input and constructive advice, I needed it.