Four leaf clover.

The Dead Man.

Picking up his pen, he began to write his very last letter.

"My dearest wife, you have been a great companion to me these years.."

Benjamin was deemed a promising child since his young years. He was one who would eventually "make his mark in society". He was a sociable boy, likable and extremely adorable. Indeed, as his teachers had predicted, he made his way into society with a Masters degree and a bright future.

He was employed by an extremely reputable company, and was made manager of the office. There, he met his girlfriend, who eventually became his life long companion. His life could then simply be described as perfect. Yet, he was not simply contented. He was an ambitious young man, he wanted more.

"Yet, I have not been the perfect husband for you. I have disappointed you, my dear wife.."

At his company he met his best friend, Spencer. They had shared their sorrows and joys. Spencer had been his best man at his wedding. He had been his ranting ground when he was down. Yet, Spencer would bring him to his deathbed.

Spencer was a frivolous man. He gambled frequently, he could never plan his finances properly, and he was always in heavy debt. To make matters worse, he was not very well-off and could hardly make ends meet. To pay of his debts, he would always borrow from Benjamin and hardly paid him back.

"Please tell Jemimah daddy loves her.."

One specific day, Spencer approached Benjamin during work. He had a huge debt, and he needed to clear it quickly. Benjamin nodded, he understood. Swiftly, he whipped out his chequebook and asked Spencer for the exact amount. Yet, when he mouthed out the words "a hundred thousand" Benjamin was taken aback. Indeed, Benjamin was well off, but he did not have that kind of money.

"But what could I do? Please tell her daddy's happy in a faraway place.."

At that time, Spencer pointed at the accounts and told Benjamin of the many things he could do to help. Instinctively, he shook his head and rejected of the idea. He could not do such a thing to his company. The company had groomed him from his younger years till then. He could not let his boss down. Yet, he could not disappoint his best friend.

The thoughts waged war on each other. He could not come to an upright decision. The little, unscrupulous side of him began to tempt him with greed. The money, he thought, could buy him a new car. The money, could help his friend. It was in favour for all ways. He began to accept the idea of embezzlement. This was the beginning of his downfall.

He meddled with the accounts and wrote a ridiculous amount that was to be paid to a non-existent company. "Two hundred thousand", he wrote quickly and with a wicked grin, the money was his. He split the money between Spencer and him. In his mind, he made a mental note. "This would be the first, and the last time." Yet, he did not keep to his word. With greed, he did it twice, thrice, till the end of the year, he had already embezzled a total of nine hundred thousand dollars.

He had never realized that one day, his bad deeds would be discovered. Exactly ten months after his first misdeed, an auditor came to check the accounts. Upon hearing the bad news, he panicked tremendously. Beads of cold seat could be seen rolling down his cheeks as the auditor entered his room to check through the account books. The auditor frowned has he browsed through the books. Fear etched in his mind as he saw the auditor's wrinkles become deeper, and deeper.

"Tell the loansharks I'm gone.."

The next thing he knew, he was summoned to his boss' office. Full with regret, he promised the boss to return the money as soon as he could. Thankfully, his boss did not pursue the matter, and he was only fired with no pay. However, it was ludicrous that his boss, or ex-boss, wanted him to return the money in two weeks.

He had then called Spencer for help. After all ,he had once helped him in his times of need. Spencer would not reject him when he's in dire straits! However, Spencer was also broke and could not help him much. "What about borrowing money?" Spencer suggested. Seeing it as his only alternative, he readily agreed. Spencer had contacts of many "money-lenders", and quickly obtained sufficient funds to return the company.

"All I wanted was a happy life with our family. I'm sorry I screwed it all up.."

What Benjamin did not know, was the extremely high interest rates. All he had on his mind, was to clear debts , clear debts and clear debts. A week after he had borrowed money, the loansharks came knocking at his door. To his horror, he debt had risen to a million dollars. He compromised and persuaded the loansharks to give him another week to clear his debt.

Putting his pen down, he opened the bedroom door of his daughter's and gave her one goodbye kiss.

Desperate, he began borrowing from all relatives as much money as he could. He could no longer contact Spencer. His best friend, had left him in heavy debt while he went scott-free. His best friend, had no conscience to help him out of his dilemma. His best friend, had led him to a dead end.

Closing the front door gently, he took slow steps to the lift. With much hesitation, he pressed the 25th storey button and waited patiently as the lift went up.

As hard as he may have tried, he could not accumulate enough money to pay back the loansharks. Yet, he did not want to implicate his family. He could not accept the fact that he would be bankrupt. Thinking of the bright future that he had, he wondered why he had taken this road. Now, his future was bleak. His family's safety was at risk. He could not do anything to help. He was helpless.

"This is my dead end," he thought.

Soon, ambulance sirens were heard near the HDB block that Benjamin had lived in.

--

Such a sad story, isn't it? Felt very upset when I read the story during lessons, it was just such a sad ending. The family is so poor thing, and it all started cause of stupid Spencer and Benjamin's own greed. Oh well, a man's greed or lust for money, can lead to such drastic consequences.


2nd post will be posted shortly.

Goodbye.