The Golden Cleats (Parody of The Pearl by John Steinbeck)

Dave was an amateur soccer player in suburban Michigan. He was cut from his high school soccer team, however, he had a burning passion for the sport and practiced on his own every day. When he graduated from high school, he joined an amateur soccer team in attempt to pursue his dream of becoming a professional. He had allocated all of his time and focus into soccer. This was a risky decision to make since he was by far the worst player on his team. He barely played 10 minutes a game and many of his teammates despised him. Dave's dreams were completely crushed when he suffered a broken ankle which put an end to his career. Other than soccer, Dave had no plans for his future, so he sought for a way to revive his career. Dave remembered hearing a legend about a pair of Golden Cleats that sit at the bottom of Lake Michigan. These cleats bring great fortune to whoever wears them. Dave began to search for these cleats because they could heal his injuries and allow him to play soccer again. He bought some scuba gear with the little money that he had, and dived down into Lake Michigan.

Dave explored the dark bottom of Lake Michigan, coming across various species of fish and vegetation. After only a few minutes of searching, Dave spotted a dim light in the distance. The light was gold in color and he immediately began swimming towards it. Dave reached the light and he saw the two cleats sitting at the bottom of the ocean. He took them with him and swam to the shore of Lake Michigan. He took off his scuba gear and ecstatically put the cleats on his feet. He felt the pain of his broken ankle fade away. The next day, he returned to his team with his new, telling the coach that he was ready to play again. The coach laughed at him but allowed to him to participate in training. When Dave got the ball, he easily weaved passed defenders and scored effortlessly. The skill that Dave had acquired left his teammates in disbelief. When training was over Dave boasted to his teammates that his new cleats are the reason that he has become so skilled. A group of Dave's teammates stayed after training and created a plan to sneak into Dave's house and steal the cleats. "We must steal those cleats from Dave, with them we can rebel 'against him and against all authority'(The Crucible 1.281)" they stated. That same night, Dave got a call from Michigan's professional soccer team, they wanted him to try out the next day. While Dave was sleeping, a few of his teammates broke into his house and stole his cleats. Dave woke up in the morning, eager to try out for the professional team, but he couldn't find his cleats. After searching all around his house, he put on his old cleats and went to the tryout. Now very nervous, Dave wasn't sure how he would play without his golden cleats. When the tryout started, he couldn't compete with the professional players. He was back to his old self, and just 10 minutes into the tryout, Dave was cut from the team. Dave drove home, feeling completely crushed. He realized that his teammates stole the cleats from him after he revealed to them that he had the magical golden cleats. Now Dave's dreams were completely destroyed.