The Little Black Book

The cold air frosted the tips of my beard and turned my nose scarlet. I bundled up in layers of raggedy clothes but it still wasn't enough, the small holes gained entry for frost that seemed to lead up my spine . Shivering violently and I could smell my hair as I scooted closer to the fire. Another man came around the fire and sat by me , he handed me a warm cup . At first I didn't take it nor even look at it , but he shoved it into my hand to as if to where if I didn't take it would had spilled. It smelled of cheese and broccoli and I could feel my stomach come to life.

"Thanks." I muttered. The other man smiled and sipped his soup, each time his glasses fogging.

"I know who you are." He chuckled quietly. I rolled my eyes and drank.

"Yea, you and everyone else."

He pointed his finger at me "Your the guy that won the lottery of 2019! Oh gosh, what happened?"

"Well I used to have a happy life, I worked hard in a factory , repairing sewing machines. Lived in a small three bedroom house. My wife would decorate the yard with colorful flowers and homemade birdhouses. I'd come home at 6:00 o'clock everyday and my kids would run into my arms as I entered the door. " I sniffled a bit at that memory and furrowed my brow, it felt good to vent my past from time to time.

"When I won, I thought I was unstoppable. Everyone suddenly liked me and wanted to be a part of my life, I gave my wife everything that she wanted. I gave her a big giant house , a nice little red sport car, the biggest diamond that could fit on her finger. My kids all went into private schools, and got any toys they desired. Sometimes I would go to parties with all my new friends, get drunk and do some drugs because I didn't need a job anymore. I was rich and let it get to my head. I barely saw my wife anymore , she was out shopping and having fun. My kids were going on trips with their friends or mindlessly playing video games. I barely saw my family anymore so I went to parties more often , started drinking and using more to cope with my loss. I met a few hot young girls, and one thing led to another. I gave them money everyday and eventually , without an income source all my bills showed up at once and my account was in the red. Debt collectors came and took the house, all of my cars, and anything of value. My wife and kids went to live with her family. I was staying at a friends house using the last bit of money I had to stay on drugs after that everyone left me. They squeezed me like a lemon then threw me away once they got what they wanted out of me." I rubbed my forehead and I felt my eyes wettened, then tired to compose myself. "I lost all of it within a year and now I'm worst off than I was before."

The man put a hand on my shoulder. I looked up at him and saw tears in his eyes as well, as if he could feel what I was feeling. He then smiled but cut short when his face rested with a serious tone.

"If you had a second chance, would you have done it all differently."

I nodded now looking down at my empty cup. I didn't know why I felt so open to this man, he seem to have a glow of warmth around him.

"Second chances don't happen." I hissed. He pulled something out of his jacket and laid it on my lap. It was a small black leather notebook, slightly worn and attached to it was a golden pen. I gave him a confused look and he nudged me to open it.

"Umm, its blank?" I said unimpressed.

"It is for now... Write down something of true desire, but it must effect in a positive way to work. Selfish desires will be executed in a, well... Lets put it this way, negative energy has its way of coming back at you, but you should already know about that!"

"Oooooooh~ a magic notebook, look man how many drugs have you been on." I mocked and thought to myself, then looked to my side and he had vanished. I looked around and down the streets , no sign that the man had bolted. The only thing that was there was an empty cup and the little black book. I put the notebook aside and rolled my eyes then huddled closer to the fire as I fell asleep shortly after.

I awoken to darkness, the fire I had going was dimmed to dark red coals. The city's lullaby was wailing through the streets, and one after another every shop went lifeless. I looked over at the lone notebook and grumbled. Picking it up off the ground and I turned the front cover over, the number 20,000 on the inside glowed a bright gold. I took the pen and was stupefy to find my mind blank. If I could have anything right now , my eyes crawled over to the extinguished flames. The word fire left the tip of my pen as it began to glow, suddenly a giant burst of flame appeared on the coals, my fingers began to tremble and my mouth got dry. My pen went a million miles per hour, I wrote down some of the simple things I wanted right now. Blankets, clothes, shoes, and a buffet of food.

I was in my own world munching down on giant turkey legs and mashed potatoes and gravy like a wild animal when a young man came up to me.

"Could you please spare some, I'm so hungry?" He asked in a soft voice.

"Mind your own business, you've never helped me!" I growled. The man with a shocked look lowered his head and moved along. I rolled my eyes and continued eating when suddenly all the food I was devouring turned into flies and maggots, I dropped the whatever bugs I had in my hands and threw up on the sidewalk. I screamed with anger and clenched the book with my hands. The ink that was once gold was now black, I remembered what that man had said about selfish deeds. I got up and ran after the man that was now almost out of sight. I ran as fast as I could down the street to catch him and apologized immediately and guided him back to where I was at. I gave him one of my blankets, some shoes and clothes then wrote in the notebook for food as it appeared in the same buffet style as before. The man with tears in his eyes thanked me and started to eat as well. For a long time that flame of happiness in my heart was cold and dark but now felt warmer than before, for once in a long time I was happy again.

The more I used the notebook , the numbers on the front page decreased at a slow cline but my happiness grew. I had built a homeless shelter with new beds and blankets, also a place with warm food at all times. Since that shelter did not have a steady amount of money going into it ,me and my new younger friend whom I had helped before went in and started a business for a farm. It generated bundle amounts of foods and herbs for the shelter , our families and people in the city looking to trade their own goods. I have since made many friends and used money to earn money in a positive way. Money does make somebody happy, but the thought of giving and care will make all the difference.

As I walked down to my corporate office ready to purpose a new trade market idea for farmers and locals , a man appeared out of the corner of my eye. I stopped and stared, it was the man who had given him the notebook with a small smile that framed his face. I started to go over to thank him, but he gave me a wink and vanished into a golden dust. I think I had just saw the approval of my guardian angel.