The Benjamins


Ryan Kilde, a young hopeful trying to make his way into the tight world of finance, tightened his tie as he stepped out of the subway into the crowded, slightly hazy, station in the financial district of New York City. He checked his watch, he was right on time for his appointment. This had to go right, if he could show the company that he alone had the skills to make them money in the competitive business of a stockbroker then he would, “Have it made,” and would be making $500,000 a year in under 5 years, plus his own investments. And then it would continue to multiply, and multiply, and multiply.


He was still lost in his daydreams when the taxi pulled up in front of a huge stone building with American flags over the doors and a brass engraving of an eagle high up in the walls. Ryan paid the driver, gave him a generous tip and walked through the doors. Inside was all polished marble and stainless steel. As he walked up to the desk, Ryan noticed how not a single thing, not even a pillow on the sofa was out of place. When he got to the front desk, he told the clerk his name and that he had an appointment to see Mr. Graver. The man told him to go right ahead and that Mr. Graver had been waiting for him.


When he got to the door with Mr. Graver’s name on it he knocked and when there was an answering call he stepped inside to find a stern man in a grey suit standing behind a desk. There was a short greeting and then they both sat down at the desk. The man named Graver then proceeded to grill Ryan about everything from past experience, to what he saw in the future of the US, and after an hour of this sort of interrogation shook his hand and told him to wait for a reply.


A few anxious days of waiting for the phone call passed before the phone finally rang showing the caller I.D.of Mr. Graver. When Ryan picked up the phone an automated voice told him in a monotone that he had been selected as one of their new employees and told him to report to the same building on Monday for the first day of work.


6 Years Later:





Ryan punched in the code to the elevator to take him to his penthouse on top of a tall complex in the middle of New York City. He was tired from a long day of dealing with high profile clients who all wanted to outdo each other in a hectic day of trading. He threw his thousand dollar sport coat on the back of a recliner and turned on his huge plasma screen TV. Ryan picked up the phone to call someone, anyone, but instead just called in some pizza and continued to watch TV alone. When the pizza arrived he paid the delivery boy with a $100 bill and closed the door before the teenager, whose name was Nathan, could give him change. That night he tossed and turned in his huge king size bed, and got tangled in his covers until he decided that sleep was a pointless endeavor.
He got up to do the same thing he'd been doing for the past month and a half: he got up, opened a Red Bull, and studied charts for work. However, this night was different because as he was getting his Macbook started he came to a realization: he was not as happy as he thought he would be in this life. He dismissed the idea but couldn’t shake the nagging in the back of his head to just get rid of it all.
Turns out that being a rich bachelor living alone in a huge city wasn't what he’d hoped for on that long ago day when he was going to his first job interview that put him on this path. He was becoming the suit that he wore, grey, silent and professional and he was the loneliest man in New York. He became distant from his friends and family. He blended into the crowd and became just another face. It was at this time that Ryan decided he needed a huge life change.
That night he made a decision. He decided that this just wasn't his life and he decided that maybe he didn't really want a huge mansion with sports cars and maids. This decision would change the rest of his life.


Two weeks later, after very little preparation he just disappeared. Ryan donated all but a small portion of his money to various charities, bought a small plot of land in Vermont and hired a builder to construct a small log cabin. Now he goes hunting for his meat, chops his own wood and has the company of two dogs that he couldn’t keep in the city which is what makes him truly content.


15 years later


Ryan Kilde stepped out of his small log cabin into the crowded trees and slightly hazy morning air of the fall Vermont woods. He took a sniff of the fresh clean air and smiled to himself. Ryan Kilde was finally truly content.