Take It Or Leave It

• Annabelle Marshall, Grade 9
• Short Story
• 2020

The voice inside his head said take it, keep it. No-one would ever know.
Arthur drove home through the winding streets, up the towering hill and back down the other side. Droplets of rain were having races down the windows of his taxi and it was getting darker by the second. Arthur made just about enough money to put a modest sized meal on the table for all five of his kids, as well as his wife. He had recently moved from the outskirts of China to Beijing where he could hopefully live a better life as a taxi driver.
When he got home, Arthur immediately tidied the litter from his taxi when he noticed something protruding from under the passenger seat. Bending down to investigate, he discovered a wallet. Inside, he found five thousand dollars in cash. Although, there was a drivers licence inside, he wasn’t quite sure how he would be able to find the tourist who owned this wallet in Beijing. $5000 was a lot of money. Five thousand dollars would put new shoes on his children’s feet. Five thousand dollars would help get his car fixed to stay on the road longer. Five thousand dollars was more than he earnt in five months. How could he return the five thousand dollars when his family desperately needed it so much?
Rain now began to pour, and the streets were awash with water. Arthur was exhausted after his 12-hour day, ferrying people from one side of Beijing to the other. The lower part of his back was like two rough pebbles grinding together. It was late in the evening and he craved sleep but knew it would elude him as he tossed and turned deciding what to do with the money, if he would spend it or not. How would he explain this to his children? He knew they looked up to him.
Arthur knew keeping the money wasn’t right, but his family was relying on him to put food on the table every night and to purchase basic warm clothing for the approaching winter. Later that night, however, Arthur received a phone call from his boss of the taxi service, claiming that a man believed he had left his wallet in his taxi.
This was Arthur’s final opportunity to keep the money. He could choose to keep it and tell the boss and tourist that they must be mistaken as there was no wallet to be found. Or he could admit that he did find the wallet. It was a life-changing choice…
The words blurted out of his mouth before he had a chance to think. “I found the wallet.”
The following morning, the tourist came to collect his possession. He saw Arthur’s dilapidated small house and met his children and wife. Slowly, Arthur handed the wallet over to the man. However, instead of the tourist putting it in his pocket, he opened it and offered all the money to Arthur. Arthur was speechless. After what seemed an eternity, he finally asked why. The tourist smiled, simply said “thank you,” turned and left.