Huge Success Promised

A deal’s a deal. You get your end of the bargain, right?

Finally.

He had arrived, hidden behind the curtain. The wooden floor of the stage possessed an unnatural shine. Overhead, the lights glared at him.

The second toe of his right foot poked through his sock. His black loafers covered the embarrassment, but he wished he had chosen more carefully. The slacks squeezed his middle, and the urge to relieve himself grew stronger. His palms felt clammy.

After innumerable sleepless nights. After suffering bleeding fingertips. After liters of sweat and tears.

Across the country, around the world, those who had made similar sacrifices waited for their names to be called.

The fellows behind him shuffled their feet. Success awaited them all. Believing the promise, they had performed their end of the bargain. The rest was assured.

His cap tilted. He shifted it back into place.

Music boomed from the speakers. Uplifting. Congratulatory. Transitory.

The ceremony began.

Those before him stepped forward as the announcer’s voice resounded.

When his turn came, his gown fluttered as he strode to retrieve a rolled-up piece of paper.

He stayed jobless for six months after graduation. They all did. Maybe longer.

Dash Ip might or might not be asserting that education is a raw deal. His novels, he would like to think, are a good deal.

Inspired by Zane Dickens’s weekly prompt:

https://readmedium.com/weekly-prompt-fooling-the-world-252b06c199b5