Special

High on stage the newly elected president smiled at the cheering crowd with tears in his eyes. All those months of hard campaigning, of late night meetings and careful palm greasing had paid off. Not bad for a small town kid who first arrived at the Big Apple with nothing but a straw hat on his head.  Not bad for an open homosexual.

As Derick West, the country's first gay president, took the mic among the flashes of dozens of cameras to begin his speech, a small part of him recalled that single quiet night when his old pa had sat next to his bed, still partly in shock at the revealation, repeating over and over that they would always love him, no matter what he did with his life. Because he was their son.

Because he was special.

Half a street and ten stories away, Gerald Nicole downed another glass of 1910, glaring through the tinted windows at the parade below as his rival achieved everything he had dreamed of. Since childhood he had aced every test, excelled through every sport, had specialized tutors and expensive courses, all to groom him for the inevitable day when he would lead his nation to glory. But now? All the fund raisers, expert panels, midnight consultations, all for naught. He had a tested IQ of 250 and an equally strong EQ. Nothing could have gone wrong. 

Except now here he stood watching some under-qualified country boy bag the presidency. Gerald finished the bottle and slammed it onto the rosewood desk. It just wasnt fair. He deserved that position more than anybody. Because all the tests told him he did. Because he did not have to rely on some cheap campaigning trick to win. 

Because he was special.

Patterson watched from within the throngs of the media ad the new president walked on stage. The cheers of the ignorant masses around him were sickening, but Patterson endured as he always did. In his childhood he had watched as these perfect machine-line boys and girls walked on stage to receive thier prizes. He had endured the beatings and scoldings for refusing to follow the flock. Even as an adult his employers were biased against him, his projects were shut down without reason, his voice censored over the web. He was doomed by society to remain forever mediocre for not being one of the sheep. The irony was not lost on him. For years he thought himself alone. But someone had spoke to him, found in him a kindred spirit, showed what he had to do to break the chains of his fellow man. 

The president began his speech. Patterson smiled and opened his coat, revealing a single detonator. He laughed as his body blazed in simultaneous detonation, his heart without a single regret. In a single instant, the entire parade was consumed in a destructive, bright light. Patterson now knew why he had endured all that pressure, all that humiliation, all that pain. Because someone had recognized him for his worth. Because he had fulfilled a purpose far above that of his fellow sheep.

Because he was special.