A new TV station was opening its headquarters in Matt’s city. He immediately filed his CV, hoping for an opportunity to get a job as a reporter. There were tons of young and enthusiastic journalists hunting for a workplace, and he knew it wasn’t going to be easy. He was not so young as the job description required and had little experience in front of the cameras.

He had had to leave a good job in a digital portal in Boston because his father was seriously ill and needed him back home in Kirkwood, Missouri. Now he needed something to survive and this was the best chance he had found in his field as a journalist.

His CV was impressive, the HR woman told him, but he will have to pass a test in which he will be recorded telling the news in front of a camera like all the other candidates. He was terrified and sure that he will fail.

The night before the recordings, his father fell at home. He had to call 911, and they sent an ambulance. He spent the night in the hospital with him. The doctor said that it has been a mild stroke. He never lost his consciousness but when Matt tried to talk with him, he stared back at him like a complete stranger. That look pierced Matt’s heart and with that weight in his soul he went to the building of the TV station for his test.

Alone

He sat on a stool in front of a camera blinded by the lights and felt utterly alone. Matt tried to relax, smile, and begin to talk, looking straight to the objective. Suddenly, a woman behind the camera stumbled upon a cable and fell, throwing down one of the lights, which impacted the big cool water bottle. An assistant tried to avoid the disaster but ended utterly wet.

Everybody began to laugh. Only Joshua, the cameraman, and Matt focused on their jobs until they finished the recording. Joshua had a lot of experience of recording in hostile environments, and Matt was trying to finish as soon as possible to get back to her father.

-Thank you, Matt. We will call you, he heard

He had no memory of how he had delivered the news during the cast. Only knew that something chaotic happened and was sure nobody would call him for the job.

Back at the hospital, Matt found his father recovering. At least he knew who he was. That lost glance had disappeared.

-How was it?

-what?

-The recording

-Oh daddy, don’t worry about that. I’m so glad you’re back!

Matt’s phone rang.

-You’ve got the job

-What?

-We were impressed how you remained focused in the middle of all that chaos. You are a natural. How about beginning tomorrow?

FFFC: 144

Photo by Ross Sneddon on Unsplash