Tick, tock — the deadline looms,

My stomach churns with dread.

I focus in this quiet room,

Connect thoughts in my head.

Then I hear a whisper,

Behind the nearest shelf.

“Now you never met me mister,

You wrote all this yourself.”

I see a man leave with a grin,

Relief across his face.

It seems that he has had paid to win,

Or at least avoid disgrace.

In his wake a hooded girl,

Counting stacks of cash.

At my glance, her fingers twirl,

And pocket her fresh stash.

She saunters over with a strut,

Looks at my chicken scrawl.

“I can help you out of your rut,

All you have to do is call.”

She scribbles down her number,

Amongst my scattered thoughts.

As she leaves I’m feeling dumber.

I’m tempted but might get caught.

Before she’s even left my sight,

I give her line a ring.

She turns and looks, expression bright,

“Well that was quick,” she sings.

I talk her through my project,

Explain the time constraint.

“I can do it no sweat,

Pay up front with no complaint.”

“Meet here in the morning,

I guarantee at least a B.”

And then her final warning,

“Remember, it was you, not me.”

I make my way back to my dorm,

And try to get some rest.

Anxiously await the morn,

Mixed feelings in my chest.

I arrive to the spot a little early,

As my own little way to cope.

The clock chimes — my stomach’s whirly,

But she shows with an envelope.

She drops it on the desktop,

Without a single word said.

She walks on and she won’t stop,

Out of sight she goes instead.

I fumble the package open,

Inside I find a note.

“This isn’t what you were hoping,

But you’ve been played by the GOAT.”

Behind it is blank pages,

Packed full of empty heft.

A fire inside me rages,

Leaving me bereft.

I don’t turn in the assignment,

Which causes my grade to slip.

GPA drops in alignment.

I lose my scholarship.

This chain reaction was not good,

Only myself to blame.

All thanks to the girl in the black hood,

With full wallet and no name.