Falling Into Third

Third place.

Some people would be happy that they won third place if they worked hard and tried their best. But third was a fall for me and I fell hard.

I knew I wasn't first place material, never was, never would be. I was cool with that. There would always be someone above me in the ranks, someone who deserved it whether they earned it or not.

I strove for second. I fought hard to maintain a level of consistency that edged out my competition. I didn't care if it was a close second or second by a mile, as long as I remained second best.

It's not that I didn't know how much I valued second place, I did. I had fallen softly before, briefly, and I dusted myself off and caught back up relatively quickly. I prided myself on my comebacks.

It's that this time I couldn't get back to second place. Second was lost to me forever now. I had been usurped, my title erased, my name lowered below another's.

Bruised, sore, and defeated, I trudged home dragging my third place ribbon through the dust.