The Best of the Best

Armed with a sharp leather briefcase, a crisp suit, and a cunning, snakelike facade, Adriel had nothing to lose. He had given up everything for this moment. His entire future teetered precariously on the edge of prosperity and failure. Throughout the course of his life, Adriel had simply gotten what he wanted with little to no effort.

Everything came easily to him. He walked stably and consistently by nine months old, and he spoke entire sentences by twelve months. At the ripe age of three, the incipient prodigy read at the level of a second grader, and as an eight-year-old, he read at the level of a high school sophomore. Series of tests as a young child confirmed that he was well above average in everything from arithmetic to athletics and size.

By the time he graduated high school, dubbed valedictorian with the highest possible weighted GPA, he had reached a stature of six feet and six inches tall, alongside a staggering 250 pounds. This helped him excel at both basketball and football. His peers often encouraged him to experiment with ice hockey, but he declined with a nonchalant head shake each time. He played it off as a lack of interest in the sport, but truthfully, he doubted his abilities on the ice.

It didn’t come as a shock to anyone that Adriel Pierce ended up among the best of the best at Harvard. He never bothered to look into universities or majors, knowing he would have countless schools on their knees, begging for his attendance. He had his choice of major for a free ride, and he chose business and finance. While he was there, he memorized every textbook and aced every exam before graduating after a mere four semesters, at the top of his class once again.

He had no doubts about entering the workforce, despite never having worked a day in his life. His superiors advised him against applying for a prestigious position at a world- renowned company right off the bat, but he turned an obstinate ear and chose not to listen.

Mere weeks and a meticulously prepared and revised presentation later, the mulish Adriel found himself standing before the receptionist at the front desk of the world’s fastest-growing company. Nearly 40 other people were applying for the same position as him that very day, but he trusted his abilities to present and con the company into hiring him. If he grew fearful of his adversaries at any point, he would turn to one of his signature ruses.

He was scheduled as the second-to-last presentation of the morning, and he was required to give a mere two-minute spiel about the assets he could contribute to the company. Being the overachiever he was, he crafted and memorized a 10-minute presentation about not only his attributes as an employee but his past accomplishments. He spoke concisely and tactfully about traditional marketing strategies and how they had proved useful in the past.

Feeling confident in his abilities, he strode out of the room and nearly collided with a short girl with a dark mop of hair atop her head. She stood stiff and rigid in front of the door, presentation notes clutched desperately against her chest. Her eyes widened in terror as Adriel, in his six-and-a-half-foot glory, exited the room, nearly mauling her in the process.

“I’m so sorry,” she stammered. “I didn’t expect you to come out so quickly.”

“You’re all right. Should’ve looked where I was going,” he responded, feeling forgiving thanks to the positivity of the hiring panel’s response to him.

“I’m Lillian,” she shared. “I’m so nervous, I’m shaking.” She held her trembling hand out to the tall man before asking, “How did your speech go?”

“Adriel Pierce,” he thrust his hand into hers for a shake. “Mine was better than I ever could have imagined. I’m sure yours will be okay, too.”

Lillian’s name was called from inside the room and she cast Adriel a warm smile and a thumbs up before disappearing into the board room, her heels clacking against the linoleum floor.

Adriel cast the floor an askance look as he made his way down the hallway, hearing Lillian’s bell-like voice echoing through the room on the other side of the walls. He couldn’t help but wonder what she was speaking about.

Second place at the science fair in seventh grade was Adriel’s only experience with failure or loss of any kind. Both he and Lillian were called back for a conference with the hiring panel regarding the position they were competing head-to-head for. There were a total of 12 potential employees in the room, himself included, and judging by a brief glance at everyone’s faces, he was sure to gain the position.

They were each required to give a further impromptu speech on the assets they could add to the team, but Adriel had been preparing his speech since he was even granted a time slot to apply. Those hired were called to give their speeches in alphabetical order by last name. Pierce, Adriel’s surname, came later in the alphabet than his fellow applicants, but Lillian’s came even later. In fact, she was the final person to speak.

Internally, Adriel, a stickler for traditional ways of doing things, guffawed at the modern, innovative techniques she was proposing. His face twisted into a dour expression as he absorbed her words, mentally dubbing her a fool. But despite her tiny, hunched and nervously shaking figure, the closure of her speech was rewarded by a moment of tense silence preceding a standing ovation from nearly everyone in the room.

A flush of embarrassed pride washed over Lillian’s face, and she ducked her head shyly as the applause reached her ears. Needless to say, she received the position and was set to start work the following Monday.

Adriel left the room in a huff, his lack of solicitude blinding him as he listened in to the conversation that wafted through the halls from his fellow rejects. His cheeks flamed as he, a brand-new graduate without anything to his name, began to entertain the idea of getting a job that paid less than six figures.

His untinctured methods of business proved to have less potential than Lillian’s riskier, more rewarding tactics. In a formal rejection email, the company informed Adriel that, while his acquired tactics were tried and tested, they were looking for more innovative, future-friendly strategies to fuel their climbing success.

Adriel couldn’t believe that his jaded self-perspective had abandoned him, showing him the ugly nakedness of his imbecility. He clenched his jaw as he read the email, fuming in humiliation at the thought of Lillian’s disjointed ideas earning her a position with the world’s most prestigious company. As for Adriel, he was back to the drawing board without a cent, vehicle, home, or reputation to his name in the strange new world he never thought to prepare for.