Closed Curtains Open Windows

Never dim your light

Krityam walked into the interviewer's room with excitement in his eyes, a smile on his face, and a suit that was almost entirely made of brightly glowing LEDs. It didn't just glow, it glowed in patterns. The interviewers were about as stoic as a can of pumpkin soup, so this apparel of his did not startle them in the slightest. Even if it did, they did not show it on their expressions. One could say they were very professional about it.

This was Krityam's dream job, this is what he wanted to do for the rest of his professional life until one day, he could retire and live in a peaceful cottage by the hills, playing Pokémon Gold or Pokémon Silver all day. He quit his current job and learned the skills required to excel in this field while rationing food and living entirely on his savings. He did many freelance projects for free, did two internships that earned him enough to barely survive. Even so, he was still happy with his life. It seemed like he had found his purpose. One day, he woke up feeling confident and applied to his dream company. The next week, he landed an interview!

Everything that could go right for a person during an interview did. He carried himself confidently and answered all the questions that the interviewer asked, quite eloquently too, for the first ten minutes at least.

"Mr. Krityam, could you please either dim the lights of the suit or maybe turn it off? I am a little photosensitive."

"I'm afraid I can't sir, please excuse me" He got up, fiddled with his phone for a few seconds and simply left the room. Just like that. The interviewers waited for five minutes, but he didn't come back. He was by far the most promising candidate they met that day. Now they were surprised. So much so that one could see it in their expressions.

Krityam walked out with a smile on his face and a skip in his step as if his life was a movie and his favourite upbeat song was playing in the background. He didn't even bother waiting in the building's lobby until the cab he booked could arrive. He just left. The cab didn't arrive on time so he had to wait outside the front gate where there was no place to sit down, but he didn't want to go back in again after making such a show of leaving on his way out. Just as he was about to head over to amazon and impulsively buy something he didn't need, his phone rang. The ringtone startled the gardener behind him.

"Hey man! How was your interview?" It was Tariq, his brother from another mother... yes literally.

"Interview went well but it wasn't right for me, you know, so I just left the building"

"Oh, bummer, that's too bad, what happened?"

"The interviewer asked me to dim my light"

"Oh? I suppose it wasn't right for you then, you don't need that kind of negativity"

"He was a rather positive fellow actually"

"So, what did you mean when you said he asked you to dim your light?"

"He asked me to dim the light on my LED suit"

"What? Why were you even wearing an LED suit??"

"what do you mean and what? "

"What? Why were you even wearing an LED suit??"

"It was part of something I had planned for later during the interview but I couldn't get to that part since the interview ended too fast, it's a real shame, it was my dream job and they were excellent in almost every way. They even offered me a mojito and some appetizers while I waited"

"That sounds great, why did you leave the interview then?"

"Because they asked me to dim my light, I knew that it wasn't right"

"Wait, you're telling me that's the only reason? What the hell man!"

"Yeah, you know how I follow this motivational page on insta religiously. It has helped me get through some real hard times, there was an advice that said-"