Entertain Us

A room of men in suits aged around 40-55 were sitting around a long black table. The atmosphere was dead; it was like they had all been here before. The silence was loud. Someone had to break it, but no one wanted to. Until,

"What do we expect this year? The same old?"

"Yeah, every year is no different from the next. It's just a cycle repeating itself."

"This Academy has been open for a long time now, and it does produce results, but not as good as we would think."

"To be fair, it does always produce one good individual."

"Pfft, even that, last year was very disappointing. The winner was just above average."

The room fell into silence again, with all the men looking down, trying to figure out how to keep this conversation alive.

"I don't think this year will be that bad," one man said while lifting his head. He then leaned forward, putting both his elbows on the table.

"If anything, I think it will be quite interesting," he continued. This statement lifted a few heads; all the men still had straight faces, but they were listening. Looking at him with hopeless eyes.

"Why? Is there a student coming in that's caught your interest?" Questioned one of them.

"One? More than one, my friend. The quality of students is looking to be top tier." He said while grinning from ear to ear. All the other men looked at one another, wondering if he knew something they didn't.

"Quit trying to excite us. Each year, we hope that it will be entertaining, and it turns out it's the same as last year," he replied, showing a face that let him know he was not trying to entertain this conversation. The man let out a small laugh, leaned back in his chair, and said

"Did you know that Edward Burrell's younger brother is enrolling?"

That name turned heads around the room, a last name that was very highly regarded. Eyelids raised.

"Edward Burrell's younger brother?" a man repeated.

"He was a great student for the first two years, then he went off track in the last year. He was projected to win; not sure what happened to him."

"He was a promising student," someone added. The silence that trapped and covered this room was dying down.

"That's not all. Mr. Ledge's son is also enrolling."

Hearing that name made everyone in the room look towards each other in disbelief. Most men were speechless, some looking at each other with joy. Hope was starting to emerge; was this the start of something extraordinary?

"I'm not finished". He said, standing up.

Now, everyone was on the edge of their seats, waiting to be further impressed.

"We've got a couple of models, athletes, and international students. I know this may sound casual, as we have these students every year, but believe me, they are different. From their backgrounds and even some of their upbringings, they do not disappoint. We've got children whose parents are celebrities, actors, models and athletes attending. The number of egos that will be present and clashing with each other will be amazing! Gents, it will be like nothing you have ever seen before". He finished.

As he took his seat, the atmosphere in the room changed. From before, where it was gloomy and grey, suddenly was filled with excitement and eagerness. You wouldn't imagine this room was full of middle-aged men. Most men in the room were now on the edge of their seats, some standing; they didn't know what to do with themselves. Smiles covered their faces. After years of experiencing and watching what seemed like a repeating show over and over again with different characters, it was finally looking to be something entertaining.

The man leaned forward one more time and calmly yet excitedly said

"Gentlemen, I think this year will be something special".

September 4th. Monday 7:49 AM.

A lone boy stood in front of the academy entrance.

My ID photo came out nice. This is probably the best photo that has ever been taken of me.

He was admiring his student ID. Smiling down at it.

But, this scar man. It ruins my face. I've gotten used to it, but it's still ugly.

He felt the scar on his face with his left hand. Slowly running his fingertips across it to feel it and reminisce.

It is what it is. Anyways, the entrance looks nice. So this is what an American school looks like. Looks a little too prestigious for me. I don't think I fit in.

He put his ID in his pocket and gazed around the place. The clean architecture was impressing him. It was a little surreal for him.

These uniforms are annoying, man. I haven't worn a uniform since secondary school. Why can't I just wear a tracksuit?

He was pulling parts of his blazer and trousers (pants). He didn't like the feel of the material on his skin. There were a lot of people walking past him as he was just standing in front of the gates.

And why's everyone tall as well? it's not fair bro. I know I'm short, but still. The height differences are kinda mad.

He watched as tall individuals continued to walk past.

The girls are pretty, though. It looks like there's models everywhere. Maybe I'll find my wife here.

He smiled, sneaking glances at a couple of girls that were close by. Two girls walked past and just about missed bumping into him. One of the girls turned her head to look back at him.

Woah. She's really pretty...

He quickly snapped out of it and remembered what he was waiting for.

Where are these guys? They said we were gonna meet at the entrance.

Bzt!

Perfect timing. His phone got a notification. He took his phone out of his pocket to check the notification. It was a message.

'We're all inside. Where are you?'

They went inside without me. I was stood here looking like a weirdo for no reason. Everyone kept looking at me.

He checked the time on his phone.

7:52 AM.

I am kinda late. We agreed to be here at 7:45.

He put his phone in his pocket and looked ahead towards the entrance.

"Heh, this is the start, I guess", he said, putting his hands in his pockets.

The boy smiled, looked up at the sky and excitedly said before he started walking,

"These next three years should be fun".