Gary walked into
his favorite coffee shop and looked around for his friends. He found Trevor and
Joan sitting at a table on the other side of the room with a board game between
them.
“Hi guys. Hey, is
that Candyland?” Gary picked up one of the playing pieces and turned it over in
his hand. “Wow, I haven’t seen this game since I was a kid! I used to play it
every day in kindergarten.”
“Yeah,” said
Joan, slouching back in her chair. “That’s what Trevor said, but it’s not the
same for him now.”
Gary looked at
Trevor, who held his face in both of his hands. He looked upset.
“Hey buddy,” Gary patted him on the back. “Are you okay?”
Trevor shook his
head. “I used to be so good. It was my gift.”
Gary leaned closer to Joan. “What’s he
talking about?”
Joan sighed.
“Apparently, when Trevor was little, he was a Candyland champion. He was
undefeated and beat all the kids in his neighborhood. He hasn’t played in
twenty years, and until we found it today he thought he had a special skill for
the game.”
“Skill? Really?”
asked Gary. “Isn’t it just a matter of drawing cards and moving where they say?
I mean, you don’t actually have to think to play this game.”
“I was so good!”
Trevor lifted up his head and moaned. “My mom told me I had a special gift. No
matter how tough things were in life, I always told myself, ‘at least I can beat anybody at Candyland.’ It was all a lie. This game is 100% chance!”
He dropped his head back into his hands.
“Um, Trevor,”
said Gary, kneeling down beside him. “You have lots of other talents. Just
because Candyland was a delusion doesn’t mean you aren’t good at other things.
You must have another skill, right?”
Trevor lifted his
head again and thought it over. “As a matter of fact, I do. Mom also told me I
was the king of Chutes and Ladders, and I kicked ass at Hungry Hungry Hippo. Do
you think we can find those games?”
Gary and Joan
looked at each other.
“I don’t know how
to break this to you, Trevor,” said Joan, “but your day is about to get a lot
worse…”
No comments:
Post a Comment