[ WP ] The pain of second place

There we were. There were about ten of us, sweating, our hearts beating rapidly. We were lined up, pressed against the wall. And we waited. 
 None of the others mattered, though. There was only myself. Me against myself. I had to do my best. I had to *beat* my best. I had to be **better** than my best. 
 That's what I was told, at least. At the end of the day, against the wall, everything mattered. All the factors had to be tallied, every single one. You could break a personal record, you could be the best you've ever been. However, none of this matters until you come out as **the** best. 
 I'm positive that there, against the wall, we were all thinking the same thing. None of us would be satisfied unless we came out on top, victorious. 
 Then came the Voice. The almighty, booming Voice that filled the room as it spoke. I do n't remember exactly what it said. It does n't really matter. All I'm sure of is that it broke me. 
 I never moved, never shifted my head, but I knew. I knew that somewhere in the same room, against the same wall, someone was rejoicing, because he had done it. He had proved to everyone that his best was **the** best. And the burden, the stress of doubtfulness and the unknown, was lifted from him on the movement. To him, the soul-crushing Voice that plagued myself and the others was a psalmic, angelic song of reassurance. The glory was all his. He had done it. He was, and will remain, the Winner. 
 And what of myself? I had lost. I had come so close, but I ended up so far away. I was in a void, a purgatory of shame and disdain. 
 The thought that plagues me the most was that I was so close. It could have been mine. It nearly was. The joy, the glory, the feeling of self-fulfillment and completion. Alas, that was not the case. I was never supposed to be the best, to win. Life was pulling a cruel, terrible joke on me. And this was the punchline. 
 Yet nobody was laughing. 
 So who am I? What am I? I am pain. I am dust. I am nothing. 
 I am the man who came in second place.
