On this episode, Everyone Get On Board, our short story dives into the insanity that are board games! Why are we so hyper-competitive, and what are the best ones to play? Season 3 kicks off with an enjoyable return to form as we prepare for the best SMIRK season yet!
Welcome to Smirk. A podcast that covers society and culture through a storytelling lens. Part creative writing, part discussion, and always interesting. Each week our hosts brings a story to the show, a story they wrote themselves, which is immediately followed by discussion on the author’s moral or theme. These stories can cover any topic the host wants to discuss, it can be lighthearted or more serious. No one but the author knows if these tales are truth or fiction, and part of the fun is guessing while you’re listening before the reality is made clear. We want to hear from you! If you want to share YOUR story, join the conversation by writing in to mystory@smirkpodcast.com, and include your moral, or you can let us guess at it. This is the podcast that looks at truth, fiction, and reality. With a Smirk. Don’t forget to subscribe to Smirk and share the show with your friends!
Want to read Aaron’s story “Everyone Get On Board!” in full? Think you can identify the moral or theme for this episode? Read it below, and then take a listen to the podcast.
Everyone Get On Board!
Peter was out for blood.
For what seemed like forever, he had been juggling real estate acquisitions with pristine precision, only to now have Jacque sweep in at the last moment and undercut him. She was less skilled, far less talented, and yet at every turn in his latest venture, she bested him. Real estate is a nasty business, flipping properties and grossly overinflating prices comes with the territory, but new blood like Jacque never gets the better of Peter. Never.
And he would be damned if he was going to lose everything…to HER. In Peter’s mind, Jacque didn’t even deserve a seat at the table, to steal an overused mobster expression. She could barely form words, she was the Rain Man of real estate, and Peter refused to take this lying down.
This latest property could make his name and IF he could acquire it, there would be no one left in this town who could deny he had sole domination over the market. Peter could taste the victory, but first…he has to land it before Jacque.
You see, people believe real estate is as simple as walking in the door and laying claim. Novices falsely believe this nonsense. Winners, moguls if you will, they know different. It’s a constant battle of wills and foresight. It’s a tested strategy of bold determination. Peter understood that to be a true winner, a mogul if you will, you have to scoop up every relevant property, build it up, and then dominate the market by elevating prices so that only the rich can find themselves worthy. Once you accomplish this, no one can break your hold. You can own entire zip codes if you play your cards right.
But every stranglehold on a market comes down to one majestic location, that one specific property that can either solidify your position, or crush a legacy. Peter knew this was that property. He knew it as well as he knew how proud his father would be of this final acquisition, the man who taught Peter everything he knows about dominating has now grown and conquered on his own. The student has become the master.
But Jacque got here first. She must be smarter than Peter gives her credit for, because she is weighing her options, strategizing over whether or not this property is worthy of the exorbitant costs. Peter knows full well this is dire straits. If he manages to bring this home, it will be an almost historic accomplishment. If Jacque closes this deal, however, he’ll never recover.
Peter even contemplated cutting a deal with Jacque, handing off a few lesser properties in exchange for the higher end market he has always strived for. But ultimately his blind greed and hyper-competitive nature always wins out out, as he flatly refused to part with anything. He simply refuses to lose…especially to HER.
Jacque is in front of Peter now, eyes bopping all around the room, Peter can tell she has made her decision. He stares at her, ice cold and ready to pounce if she chooses poorly. Her eyes begin to center, and focus…on Peter. Her lips begin to part, words are about to flow. And just before she speaks, the slightest smile covers her face.
“I’ll buy it”, Jacque calmly states, and elated screaming erupts from all corners of her surroundings.
Jacque glares at Peter as he begins to smugly accept his now undeniable defeat, all of her 12 years on this planet have been building to this moment. The moment she finally humiliated her ogre of a brother.
As Peter returns her gaze, he finally acknowledges he’s been outplayed. And with that, his rage at his own failure erupts, and he flips the board and all of its pieces across the kitchen floor.
As Peter storms out of the room, he turns for one last look at the girl who brought down a formerly undefeated champion. Jacque returned his look with a confident yet respectful nod. And Peter, against his very nature, paused in contemplation before finally speaking, “good game, sis”.
Peter then smiled, nodded back, and headed up to bed.