In The Pursuit of Success

Epiphanies & Experts

I am so, so very sorry for the lack of updates, you guys! D: Really bad writer's block, and I'm not all too happy about how this chapter came out…But I hope you like it anyway. c:

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"Mr. Wade? Yes, come in. Have a seat."

Dez closes the door behind him slowly, his nerves on the rise and his entire body so tense that he feels abdomen ache. He attempts to take a seat in the chair across the desk from his interviewer, but manages to fall onto the floor due to misplaced aim. He rapidly gets up and seats himself properly upon the chair – at least as proper as he can be in his current state of anxiety.

"Are you alright, Mr. Wade?" the bespectacled woman beyond the desk asks him in a particularly intimidating monotone. She did not even bother to look up from the papers in front of her when speaking to him.

"Y-yeah," Dez stutters out, clearing his throat a bit excessively and tugging at his tie as he tries to get as comfortable as possible in his chair.

"Alright, let's get to it, shall we?" She spreads a few sheets of paper across the table – his high school transcript, the essay he had submitted the first time he applied, his resume, and a few others pertaining to extracurricular activities that he's been involved in.

"Of course, Miss…Uh…," he stops to glimpse at the gold plaque on her desk that dons her name. "Miss Liu."

"It seems that you've got quite the resume here, Mr. Wade. It's certainly built up since the last time you've applied," she continues, her eyes finally rising up to meet his.

"Yes…About that...You see…" he starts, taking a deep breath before pushing forward. "I didn't really want to get into the school because of my best friend's fame. I wanted to see if I could do this on my own, so I didn't put the work I did for Austin on my resume."

"Well, whether or not you are friends with someone famous doesn't change the fact that your music videos are professional-grade. You played a big part in his success, so I've heard."

"Yes," Dez nods, eyes focusing down on his hands, his shoulders slightly drooping as he contemplates. "I realize that now." He looks back up at her, quickly correcting his posture. Looking down at your lap isn't the best idea when being interviewed, after all.

"And your college essay is actually…Insightful. Although quite unorthodox, but a good read, I have to say," she continues. "Some spelling and grammatical errors you should try and improve upon, sure, but it's still the sort of essay we were looking for in terms of content." She takes a gander at the paper that contains his transcript, her face showing nothing less than disappointment. "However," she looks back at Dez, who swallows hard, his bright eyes wide with unease. "Your high school grades leave much to be desired."

Dez opens his mouth in an attempt to explain himself, but before he can utter a single word, his interviewer stops him.

"I understand that you've been busy focusing on your craft, Mr. Wade. Although, balance is necessary, as well. You have shown a lot of improvement at FSU it seems," she adds, her stoic face finally lightening up just a bit with a twitch of a smile. "So it seems that you might actually be UCLA material." Dez's eyes widen up even more.

"R-really? Does this mean I'm in?"

"I just have a few questions I need to ask you first…Standard procedure, of course," she nods, giving him a small wink. It seems that the odds might just be in his favor.

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"Dez!" Trish calls out to him upon seeing the suited-up redhead leave the school building. She rushes over to him, Trent and Kye trailing behind her. Dez waves at them as they approach – a huge grin donned on his face. His three friends reciprocate his smile, assuming that this meant good news.