Millionaires for the Month

by Stacy McAnulty

  Benji only half listened to the no list. All these rules were only temporary.

  “Lastly, you may not tell anyone about the challenge, including parents. No one is to know this is a game—as you put it.”

  “No problem.” This would be the biggest secret Benji had ever kept.

  “And finally, section three,” the lawyer continued. “At the end of thirty days, everything purchased with this money will be repossessed.”

  “What? Why?” Benji asked.

  “It’s to prohibit you from making a profit. You cannot have a giant garage sale when it’s over.”

  That would have been a good idea.

  Mr. McDowell spun the paper around. “That’s it. Signatures, please.”

  Benji scribbled his name on the line. Felix just stared at the papers as he chewed on his thumbnail.

  “Come on, buddy,” Benji said. “We got nothing to lose. Even if we don’t finish the game, we’re still going to have the best month of our lives.”

  Felix placed his hands on the table. Benji wished he would say something. Benji wasn’t used to being around someone so quiet. His friends talked nonstop.

  “We can do this,” Benji whispered.

  Felix took a breath, grabbed a pen, and signed his name. Benji watched to make sure Felix didn’t write no way or something like that.

  “Thank you.” Mr. McDowell collected the papers. “Mr. Trulz, why don’t you explain your role.”

  “Certainly.” Mr. Trulz sat up straighter. “We will be communicating extensively over the next thirty days. My job is to monitor and approve all spending.”

  “I get it. You’re our accountant,” Benji said.

  “Essentially. Any swipe of your debit card or electronic payment, I will be notified immediately. I’m here to enforce the agreement and to interpret the rules. If you have questions, I’m merely a phone call away. Day or night. Of course, I want you to succeed, but I will insist you play fairly.” Mr. Trulz crossed his arms and gave them an I-dare-you-to-challenge-me look.

  “That’s it. Meeting adjourned.” The lawyer stood up and offered his hand to Benji and then Felix. “Good luck, boys. Enjoy the game.”

  Rules of Play

  Section 1

  Spend $5,368,709.12 by midnight on December 1.

  Section 2

  1. Cannot give away the money.

  2. Cannot buy physical gifts for people.

  3. Must use what is purchased.

  4. No List:

  Real estate

  Vehicles

  Jewelry

  Art

  Investments (stocks, bonds, etc.)

  Companies

  Trademarks or copyrights

  Anything illegal

  Items on eBay

  5. Cannot tell anyone about this challenge and these rules.

  Section 3

  On December 2, any items purchased with the $5,368,709.12 will be repossessed.

  Felix

  Only the boys remained in the bank conference room, and Felix sat frozen in his chair. It was quarter past eleven. If today had been a normal day (would he ever have a normal day again?), he’d have been in math class.

  Benji was anything but frozen. He galloped around the table like he was riding an invisible bronco, waving his plastic debit card over his head and making whooping sounds.

  “We’re millionaires, Felix!”

  “Not really,” Felix mumbled, and picked up his debit card for the first time. It had a weight to it that couldn’t be measured in ounces.

  “What are you talking about?” Benji hopped on the corner of the table and held out his cell phone for Felix. The banking app, which Mr. Trulz had set up, was open, and the account balance showed $5,368,709.12. “According to this, we’re millionaires. According to everyone, we’re millionaires.”

  “It’s temporary.”

  Benji made a sputtering sound. “Everything is temporary. Even the sun. It’ll burn out eventually, like in a million years.”

  It’s closer to five billion years.

  Benji drummed his fingers on the table and stared at Felix. “So, what do you want to do first?”

  Felix shrugged. “Make a plan.”

  “You sound like my mom. Have you been talking to my mom?” Benji gave him an accusing glare. “Listen, Felix. You can make a to-do list tomorrow. Now let’s have some fun. We have millions and a free afternoon. What do you want to do, buddy?”

  Felix knew Benji was looking for a big idea, like swimming with great white sharks or running bases at Yankee Stadium. (Are those activities you can actually buy?) But what Felix really wanted was to get something that every kid at Stirling already had.

  “So, what’s it going to be?” Benji wriggled his eyebrows.

  “I want a cell phone.”

  “That’s it?”

  Felix nodded. “Yeah. For now. Until we have a plan.”

  “Okay. Have fun with that.” Benji jumped off the table. “I’m going to go see if I can take flying lessons and go skydiving. Six Flags is closed for the season. How much do you think they’d charge to reopen it for the afternoon?”

  Felix shrugged.

  “Have fun phone-shopping.” Benji pulled open the conference room door. “Let’s meet tomorrow before school. Seven a.m. at the Market Street Diner. We’ll work on your plan then.”

  “I don’t know if I can get a ride.” His mom’s schedule changed from day to day.

  “You’re a millionaire, Felix. Figure it out.”

  Wednesday, November 3

  And Felix did figure it out. Using his new iPhone, he’d texted Georgie and asked for a ride in the morning. In exchange, he’d taken her and Michelle to dinner. They’d chosen the place, and that was how Felix had ended up at Red Lobster for the second night in a row.

  At 6:55 a.m., Felix was sitting alone in a booth near the front window of the Market Street Diner. A waitress brought over a menu and jokingly offered him coffee. He watched the parking lot as a red Volkswagen pulled up with Benji in the backseat. Both the driver and Benji got out, and they shook hands before heading inside. Benji joined Felix, and the driver sat alone.

  “I’m starving.” Benji grabbed the menu out of Felix’s hands.

  Felix was hungry too but was more interested in coming up with a plan than ordering food.

  “Did you get a phone?” Benji asked.

  “Yeah.” Felix held up his new toy. “Benji. I think we’re in trouble. I figured out how much we have to spend every day.” Felix had wasted most of the evening playing with his phone and the rest of the time stressing over money.

  “About a hundred and seventy thousand dollars,” Benji said, not looking up from the menu. “I did my homework too, and I just opened the banking app. We only spent about ten thousand on day one.”

  “Ten thousand? How?” Felix had only used his debit card for the iPhone (and a one-month activation) and his Red Lobster dinner. “And I need that app.”

  Benji helped him set it up.

  “I ordered a new computer and stuff online. And Aidan, Luke, and I went to laser tag, and an arcade, and a go-cart track. I would have invited you, but I didn’t have your number.”

  The waitress returned. “Morning, boys. You do have money, right?”

  “More than we know what to do with.” Benji ordered blueberry pancakes, a western omelet, an egg-and-biscuit sandwich, and French toast.

  Felix went with a waffle and a side order of bacon.

  “Seriously, I don’t think it’s possible, spending that much every day.” Felix had done some simple calculations. Spending $178,956.97 meant they could buy 716 pairs of sneakers a day (if the sneakers cost $250 each). But the rules said the boys each had to use what they purchased. So if they
each wore 358 pairs a day, and they were awake for sixteen hours a day, they’d have to change their shoes every 2.68 minutes. Every day! For a month!

  “It’s not going to be easy, but it’ll be awesome.” Benji smiled and shrugged. He didn’t look worried at all. “First, I think we should quit school.”

  “What?”

  “Just for the month. Spending money is a full-time job.”

  “That’s dumb,” Felix said.

  “Don’t call me dumb!” Benji’s face hardened, and he looked ready to hit something. Maybe Felix.

  “I didn’t. Sorry. I meant the idea.”

  “Never mind.” Benji smiled again, but it didn’t look genuine. “We need to get a fancy place to live. And since we can’t buy a mansion, we should rent a penthouse at the nicest place around, like the Grand Regency. It’s only twenty minutes away. And it has a pool.”

  “I don’t know if my mom will—”

  “Stop right there.” Benji held up a hand. “You aren’t going to get through this without disappointing your mom. She might even get mad. Have your parents ever been mad at you?”

  Felix shrugged. His mom rarely got upset with him, but he rarely did anything to get upset over. His father didn’t care enough to get mad at him. Felix hadn’t seen Mark in four or five years, and the last time had been by accident. They’d bumped into him at a gas station near Syracuse. It was a quick handshake and a “See ya soon.”

  Mark didn’t care about Felix, but maybe he’d care about the money.

  The waitress returned with platters of food. Most of it would be thrown away (though they’d be sure to take at least one bite of everything). As Felix finished his waffle, he glanced up at the TV, which had the current time and temperature in the corner.

  “We have to go!” He jumped out of the booth. “How are we getting to school?” He hadn’t considered that when Georgie had dropped him off.

  “Uber. Relax, buddy.” Benji calmly waved the waitress over.

  She gave them the bill, and Benji immediately called Mr. Trulz. “Are we allowed to tip a thousand dollars to a nice waitress?” The answer was no. Their tipping was limited to 20 percent. Benji paid theirs and the Uber driver’s tab. Then they crawled into the backseat of his car.

  “Felix, meet Reggie.” Benji took care of introductions.

  Reggie put an arm awkwardly into the backseat as he drove, and Felix shook it.

  “Nice to meet you.” Reggie had black hair that he wore in a man bun, a short beard, and thick-rimmed glasses.

  “I’ve hired Reggie to be our driver for the month,” Benji said to Felix. “We have a lot of business to attend to, and we can’t be waiting around for an Uber or a Lyft.”

  Felix had not spent a single minute waiting for an Uber or Lyft in his life.

  “Benji made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. I tried, but he wouldn’t get out of my car until I accepted.” Reggie laughed.

  “We’re paying him a thousand dollars a day from now until December first, with a ten percent daily raise if he’s a good employee.”

  Felix had no idea how much a chauffeur should make. A thousand per day seemed like a lot of money, but it was a mere blip of the total they had to spend.

  “Did you run it by Mr. Trulz?” Felix asked.

  “Yep,” Benji said. “The troll approved it. Took care of everything. But Reggie is unavailable on Monday and Wednesday mornings between nine and noon.”

  “And some Tuesday evenings I’ve got study group,” Reggie added. “I’m majoring in philosophy at the University at Albany. I have to think about my future.”

  “We’re not going to stand in the way of the man’s education,” Benji added.

  Suddenly, Reggie hit the brakes hard. The seat belt tightened across Felix’s chest, and his head whipped forward.

  “Dang, dog!” Reggie yelled.

  Felix hadn’t seen the dog run into the road, but he spotted him in a Waffle House parking lot now. A scrawny gray-brown thing with long matted fur.

  Reggie slowly drove past.

  “Stop the car,” Felix said.

  “I swear, I didn’t hit him,” Reggie said.

  “Just stop, please.”

  Reggie pulled over in the parking lot, and Felix jumped out. The dog either didn’t notice or didn’t care. He was too busy eating through a crumpled fast-food bag. As Felix approached, an awful stench filled the air. He didn’t know if it was coming from the dog or the nearby dumpster.

  “Here, boy,” he whispered.

  The dog glanced at Felix, but he wasn’t about to give up his free meal.

  Felix slowly walked to the mutt and patted his head. The dog’s head came to Felix’s midthigh, and his tail was short, like part of it was missing.

  “What are you doing?” Benji yelled from the car.

  Felix shrugged. He hadn’t really thought about what he was doing. It just felt like fate. The wallet, Laura Friendly, the money, breakfast with Benji, hiring Reggie had all led to this moment.

  The stray seemed to sense it too. He stopped nosing in the bag and leaned against Felix’s leg.

  “Felix, let’s go. Remember, you’re the one who doesn’t want to quit school.”

  “Coming!” Felix decided that if the dog was truly meant to be his, he would follow Felix back to the car.

  Felix walked.

  The dog followed.

  Benji

  “What are you doing?” Benji asked Felix as the stray dog jumped into the backseat. The smell of garbage and slobber filled the car.

  “Whoa!” Reggie said. “That dog stinks. Get it out.”

  “Sorry,” Felix said. “I’ll clean your car later. Please let him stay.”

  The mongrel jumped into Benji’s lap, and Benji shoved him off. He imagined the fleas and ticks crawling from the dog onto him, and it made him itchy.

  “What are you going to do with him?” Benji asked.

  “I’m adopting him.” Felix smiled wide. Benji had never seen Felix look happy.

  “Buddy, you shouldn’t be adopting a stray dog. You should buy a purebred—something expensive. We’re millionaires. Don’t forget.”

  “I want this dog.” Felix didn’t seem to mind having the filthy mutt crawling over him. He rubbed the matted ears and let the dog lick his cheek.

  Benji fought the urge to vomit.

  “It’s fate,” Felix said. “The money, the diner, Reggie. It all led to this good boy. The dog and I are meant to be. Fate.”

  “Felix.” Reggie spun in his seat to face the boys. “You’re describing determinism, not fate. Determinism means one event leads to another to another to another. All those events led to this dog. While fate means that regardless of what you did this morning—rode with me, took the bus, walked—you would have met this stinky mutt.”

  “Okay.” Felix shrugged. “Then it was determinism. Determined to happen.”

  Reggie nodded slowly and then started driving again. “You should read Baron d’Holbach if you want to know more about hard determinism.”

  “What are you going to do with him while we’re at school?” Benji asked.

  Felix stared at the roof of the car before answering. “Reggie? Can I hire you to watch my dog? At least for today?”

  “How much?” Reggie asked.

  “How about a thousand dollars?” Felix shrugged and looked at Benji. “I’ll call Mr. Trulz and set it up.”

  “And I’ll throw in another thousand if you get the dog a bath,” Benji added. He didn’t think he could talk Felix out of adopting the mutt. At the very least, they needed a clean one.

  “No problem,” Reggie said. He pulled up in front of the school. “You’re also paying to get my car detailed.”

  Felix nodded enthusiastically. “Whatever he n
eeds, we’ll pay for it.”

  “You going to name him?” Reggie asked.

  Felix didn’t answer right away. He rubbed the dog under the chin, and then a bigger smile spread across his face.

  “His name is Freebie.”

  “Just perfect.” Benji rolled his eyes.

  Felix quietly professed his love to Freebie before saying goodbye and thanks to Reggie. Benji had never witnessed love at first sight until just then.

  “You ready for this?” Benji asked as they reached the front door of the school.

  “For what?”

  “You’re not the Felix you were two days ago,” Benji warned him as they stepped inside.

  Every head turned in their direction, and as they walked to the seventh-grade hallway, kids held up their hands, and Benji high-fived them. Felix shoved his hands into his pockets. Just like that, he’d gone back to his turtle-hiding-in-his-shell look.

  “You going to be okay?” Benji asked when they reached Felix’s locker.

  “Yeah.”

  “If you’re not okay, you can tell me.” Benji grabbed Felix’s shoulders and forced him to look at him. “I don’t expect us to be best friends, but the only way this is going to work is if we’re honest with each other. Completely honest.” Benji felt a little twitch in his neck muscles, lecturing someone about honesty.

  “Got it.”

  “If you need to talk to someone, come to me. Don’t tell anyone about the challenge.”

  “I know.” Felix pushed away Benji’s hands.

  “Good. I gotta take care of some stuff.” Benji patted Felix on the back, and then he dashed into the boys’ bathroom, intending to make some calls, but Aidan followed him in.

  “Hey, Benji. Let’s do something after school. Your treat.” Aidan laughed. “What about paintball?”

  “Can’t today. I gotta meet up with Felix.” Benji shrugged. “Maybe over the weekend.”

  “Whatever.” Aidan crossed his arms. “Must be nice being a millionaire. Too bad you have to share with Felix.”