Millionaires for the Month

by Stacy McAnulty

  “Feel free to fold and iron my clothes, if you want,” Benji joked.

  Felix chewed on his thumbnail, ignoring Benji’s comment. It was easy to tell when the kid was making a decision. Finally, Felix nodded and unclipped Freebie’s leash.

  “Do you want to swim, Freebie? Do ya?” Felix sang in a voice meant for babies and dogs.

  Freebie answered by running and diving into the water. Felix jumped in right behind him, ready to rescue the dog.

  “He’ll be fine,” Benji said.

  Freebie splashed and basically swam in circles. But he didn’t go under or drown.

  “Here, boy,” Felix called to the mutt.

  Freebie’s brown-and-gray head stuck out of the water like he was sniffing at the ceiling. His form was horrible, but he eventually made his way to Felix, who rewarded him with a hug and gave him a break from frantic paddling.

  “My turn,” Benji said. “Here, Freebie. Here, boy.” Freebie turned and doggy-paddled in Benji’s direction.

  Suddenly, someone cleared their throat in that loud I-need-your-attention way. Benji turned to see a tall woman in a tan pantsuit staring down at them.

  Uh-oh.

  “Mr. Porter. Mr. Rannells. How is your stay so far?” She stood straight like a soldier.

  “Great,” Benji answered. “There’s a TV over my bathtub.”

  Felix pulled Freebie to him and slowly moved behind Benji. Maybe he thought he could hide the dog.

  “Wonderful. I’m glad you like your room.” She gave a small nod. “It looks like you’re also enjoying the pool.”

  “Yep.”

  “Unfortunately, we do not allow pets to use the pool.” She tilted her head like she was delivering sad news. “However, since no other guests are using it this evening, we will make an exception. But please note that if there are any incidents with your dog…”

  “Like if he poops or throws up?” Benji asked.

  “Yes,” the woman said. “We will have to charge your account for the cleanup.”

  “No problem,” Benji said with a shrug.

  “Thank you. I’d also like to remind you that the pool closes at nine and will reopen at eight a.m.”

  Benji looked at the massive clock on the wall. They still had over thirty minutes. “Okay.”

  “Can I do anything to make your stay more comfortable?” she asked, clasping her hands together.

  “Can you order room service for me?” Benji asked. “Have it sent to my suite for nine, since we have to get out then anyway.”

  “Certainly. What would you like?”

  “Everything.”

  “Everything?” she asked.

  “Yes, two of everything. Please.”

  “I’ll see to it, Mr. Porter. Have a good evening, Mr. Rannells.” The woman smiled, nodded, and left.

  “I don’t know if I like being called Mr. Rannells,” Felix said when the woman was gone.

  “Right? Usually, when an adult calls me Mr. Porter, it means I’m in trouble.” Then Benji put his hands together, creating a meaty rock, and splashed Felix and Freebie.

  “But we didn’t get in trouble.” Felix splashed him back.

  “Nope. Not yet.”

  Felix

  A loud knock on the bedroom door woke Felix. He rubbed his eyes and for a moment didn’t know where he was. Then he remembered. He was in the second-nicest suite at the Grand Regency, and he was a millionaire—for the month.

  Freebie jumped off the bed and let out an annoyed bark.

  “Felix, are you up?” his mom shouted through the door. “We need to leave in ten minutes.”

  “I’m up.” He accidentally knocked his binder onto the floor. He’d fallen asleep without finishing his math homework.

  After swimming, Felix had hung out in Benji’s suite, eating room service and playing video games on their phones until after midnight. They’d spent a small fortune on in-app purchases: skins and maps in Minecraft, V-Bucks in Fortnite, unlimited lives and gems in a new multiplayer world-building game. In all, $12,600.

  Felix pulled on a pair of jeans and a hoodie and then led Freebie out of the bedroom. He struggled to get the leash on the bouncing dog.

  “You were up late last night,” his mom said. “We need to set some rules.”

  “Okay.” Though Felix did not need any more rules in his life.

  “We’ll talk later. That dog is about to stain the rug.”

  When he opened the door, he saw Benji and Reggie coming down the hallway.

  “Morning, buddy!” Benji yelled. He carried a paper cup with steam drifting from the top. “Ready to go?”

  “Almost.”

  Felix’s mom stepped into the hall behind him. “What’s going on?” Then she turned to Reggie. “Who are you?”

  “Reggie Fazil, ma’am.” He gave her a big smile and a slight bow before offering a handshake. “I’m their chauffeur.”

  Freebie jumped up, putting his paws on Reggie’s chest.

  “And dog-sitter,” Reggie added as he let Freebie kiss his cheek.

  “What?” Felix’s mom looked to Felix for an explanation. “You hired a chauffeur?”

  “Don’t worry, Ms. Rannells,” Benji said. “My parents ran a background check on Reggie last night. He’s a good guy. He’s got a clean driving record and has never been arrested.”

  “How old are you?” Felix’s mom asked.

  “Twenty-two, ma’am. I’m a student at the University at Albany. Chauffeuring and dog-sitting are not my long-term aspirations.”

  “He’s studying philosophy,” Felix added because it sounded important.

  “More money in chauffeuring and dog-sitting,” she mumbled. “I don’t like what’s going on here.” She blinked a lot, and Felix knew that meant she was not happy.

  “Wait. I know.” Felix had an idea, and he wasn’t sure if it was brilliant or ridiculous. “We could hire you, Mom. You can drive us around and we’ll pay you.”

  “Whoa, am I being fired on my second day?” Reggie pulled his chin to his chest.

  “Maybe we should talk about this.” Benji grabbed Felix’s sleeve.

  “No. No.” His mom wagged her finger. “You don’t pay your mother to drive you around. I am not your employee. Not now. Not ever.”

  “Phew.” Reggie laughed.

  “Okay,” Felix said, now knowing it wasn’t a brilliant idea. “Um…I have to take the dog out, and then I’ll just ride with them.” He hoped his mom would allow it so he could finish his homework in the car.

  “Fine.” She went back into the room.

  “We’ll be in the car,” Benji added. “Hurry up.”

  It was ten to eight when Felix and Freebie finally jumped into the empty backseat.

  “We’re going to be late,” Felix said. “Sorry. It’s my fault.”

  “No sweat.” Benji turned in the front seat to talk to Felix. “If we’re going to be late, we should really be late. Let’s get doughnuts.”

  “You got it. What’s your pleasure? Dunkin’?” Reggie asked.

  “No, we have to get to school,” Felix said.

  “We will. Eventually.” Benji nodded at Reggie. “Dunkin’ is fine.”

  Felix hated to be late for school (though it wasn’t something he’d ever actually done). But with or without stopping, they were going to miss the first bell. “If we’re going to get doughnuts, we should go where my sister works. Downtown Donuts.”

  “You got it, boss.” Reggie tapped on his phone and brought up a map.

  Felix fished out his math notebook and started calculating angles on triangles, while Freebie tried to bite his pencil.

  “Someone didn’t do their homework,” Benji sang.

  “Did you?”

  “No, but I have a special class second period where I
get help with my work.” Benji never seemed to worry about anything. He was the type of guy who just expected everything to work out. And it probably did for him.

  Reggie pulled into a space in front of Downtown Donuts and offered to wait in the car with Freebie.

  “Do you want anything?” Benji asked as he got out.

  “Does Schopenhauer want a solution to human suffering?” Reggie replied.

  “Er…I have no idea,” Benji said.

  “He does.” Reggie laughed. “And I’ll take a Boston cream. If they’ve got ’em.”

  The bell over the door chimed as they walked in.

  “Welcome to Downtown Do—” Georgie gave Felix a sideways glare. “Shouldn’t you be in school?” She’d always straddled the line between sister and second mother. From as early as he could remember, she’d babysat for him, made him food, and read him stories. She’d also taught him to ride a bike and shoot a lay-up. She’d even forged his mom’s signature on permission slips—not to be sneaky but because their mother was busy doing the work of two parents.

  “On our way,” Felix said. Then he introduced Benji.

  “So you’re the co-millionaire,” Georgie said.

  “For now,” Benji said with a shrug.

  “What can I get you?” Georgie pointed a warning finger at Felix. “And it’s not on the house this time.” She’d often give him “free” doughnuts. They weren’t exactly free; she just paid for them with her employee discount.

  “All of it,” Benji said.

  “Sure.” Georgie rolled her eyes and shook her head.

  Felix got the impression that Benji wasn’t joking.

  “Whatever you got made, we’ll take.” Benji rested his hands against the glass counter. “All the doughnuts and fritters and sticky buns.”

  Georgie looked at Felix, and he nodded.

  “We need to bring snack to school.” He sounded like they were in kindergarten and today was his birthday.

  “Okay.” Georgie grabbed a box. “Chris, can you help me pack up the store?”

  Benji took a seat while they waited for their order, and Felix opened the banking app. They weren’t far off their daily target, but that was because they’d prepaid the hotel rooms.

  “We need to concentrate on spending,” Felix whispered, not wanting Georgie to hear.

  “Does this mean you’re ready to quit school and focus on our problem?” Benji did air quotes around the word problem.

  “No! But this weekend, we need to really spend money.”

  Benji nodded thoughtfully. “I hear Japan is expensive. Let’s go there.”

  “I don’t have a passport,” Felix said.

  “Okay. How about the next-best Japan? The one in Epcot.”

  “Disney?” Felix asked. “I’ve never been.”

  “You won’t be able to say that on Monday.” Benji snapped and pointed at Felix.

  Could they really just go to Florida for the weekend? Didn’t people plan for years to take a big trip like that?

  “Hey, millionaires. Your order is ready. That’ll be $516.70.” Georgie put her hands on her hips. “Are you sure you want to do this? Even five million isn’t going to last forever.”

  “I’m sure.” Felix bristled. She was treating him like a baby, not just a baby brother. “And we’ll be doing this every day. But a bigger order. One hundred and twenty dozen. Delivered.” If Benji could buy pizza lunches for the school, he could buy doughnuts.

  “I’m sure teachers are going to love that. A sugar rush on top of the hormonal mood swings of middle schoolers.” She handed him a receipt.

  Felix signed it and added a $103 tip—the amount Mr. Trulz would approve. Georgie winked at him and smiled when she saw it. If Felix had a choice, he’d have given his sister ten thousand. But he had five million and few choices.

  “Can I do anything else for you?” she asked.

  “Yeah, can you take this weekend off?”

  “Why?”

  “Because we’re going to Disney World.”

  Benji

  Benji and Felix set up the boxes of doughnuts near the cafeteria entrance. They had five minutes before the start of second period.

  “Help yourself. Free doughnuts,” Benji said to every kid who passed by, and most stopped and took at least one.

  Then Alma Miranda walked up the hallway, singing silently. She wore her usual black T-shirt and jeans, and her hair was done up like Princess Leia. Did she know Benji had a crush on Princess Leia? No way.

  “Doughnuts.” He gestured at the boxes. “What kind do you like? I bet we got your favorite. We bought out the whole store.”

  “I like glazed.” She smiled.

  “We definitely have those.” A warm sensation ran over Benji from head to toe that he couldn’t explain.

  “But I’m not hungry. I ate breakfast at home.” She kept walking. “Oatmeal.”

  “Blech,” he said.

  “And half a cinnamon bun,” she called over her shoulder. “So I’m good.”

  Benji stood in the middle of the hallway. “No normal person turns down pizza and doughnuts!”

  She pivoted. “What’s normal?”

  “Um…” He could tell this was a trap. “Eating pizza and doughnuts is normal.”

  “Why do you get to decide what’s normal?” She put a hand on her hip and stared at him. He didn’t want to look away, but her eyes seemed to shoot lasers. She might blind him.

  “I didn’t mean…I just…” He wiped his sweaty hands on his jeans.

  Suddenly, her serious, scary face broke into a smile. “I’m joking with you, Benji. I mean, you really shouldn’t tell people what’s normal and what’s not. But I just don’t want a doughnut right now. Don’t take it personally, okay?”

  “Okay. Does that mean you’ll want a doughnut someday?” What was he saying? Was he asking her on a date? No! That was not what he was doing. Maybe it was.

  Stop thinking, Benji!

  “Hey, that’s not a bad idea,” she said, and he almost fell over. “I’m on the committee—well, I am the committee—to organize the drama club fundraiser, and we need food for the event. If you wanted to donate food—”

  “Yes!” he shouted, not bothering to consider if it was allowed by the rules before answering. “I mean, maybe. Probably. When is it?”

  “December first or second, or maybe the third.” She smiled again and rolled her eyes in the cutest way possible. “I’m waiting for Mr. Palomino to give me a date.”

  “If it’s December first, I can hook you up.”

  “Why the first?” Her eyes searched his face for an explanation, and he had to turn away.

  “I’m moving to Tibet after that.” He lied, but he lied big enough that it wasn’t just a lie, it was a joke. “So if you want doughnuts or pizza or anything else for your event, it’s gotta be on the first.”

  The bell rang for their next class.

  “Okay. I’ll see what I can do.” She waved goodbye.

  * * *

  • • •

  After basketball, Benji walked to Reggie’s car, while Felix ran.

  “Hey, boy!” Felix said as he pulled open the car door. “I missed ya.” Felix and Freebie fell all over each other. It was embarrassing, and yet Benji felt a little jealous.

  “You guys stink,” Reggie said. “Where to? The hotel, I hope. You need showers.”

  “Yeah.” Benji sat in the front and put his forehead against the window to cool off.

  “Everything good, boss?”

  Benji shrugged. “Today was rough.” More kids had shown up at open gym than ever, and some of them were good—really good. Benji had never been the best, but he’d always been the biggest. Now he worried that might not be enough.

  “When are tryouts?” Reggie asked.
/>   “Monday the fifteenth,” Felix answered quickly.

  “You guys going to make the team?”

  “Maybe,” Felix said.

  Maybe? Benji already knew Felix wasn’t a look-on-the-bright-side kind of guy. But this was an easy question. Felix was one of the top players in the school. The maybe was meant for Benji.

  He turned around in the seat. “You don’t think I’ll make it?”

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “We know you’ll make it,” Benji continued. “So give it to me straight, Felix. Am I going to make the team?”

  Felix looked stunned, like the question didn’t make sense. “It’s not up to me.”

  “Duh. I know that. What are my chances?” Benji motioned with his hands like he was weighing something.

  Felix shrugged.

  “Ugh!” Benji flopped back in his seat. “Why can’t you just tell the truth?”

  “Hmmm, truth,” Reggie said. “Is there a greater pursuit than the search for truth? It’s a central pillar of philosophy.”

  “I don’t care about philosophy.” Benji put his hands over his eyes and pressed hard. “I care about making the team.”

  “Felix cannot tell you if you’ll make the team. An assertion can only be true or false in the past or present. Anything in the future is technically indeterminate.”

  Benji groaned. “Then how about an opinion.”

  “Opinions have little to do with truth,” Reggie said. “They rely on our experiences and ingrained biases.”

  Benji couldn’t imagine telling his parents that he hadn’t gotten a spot. They’d sent him to basketball camp at Duke and at Syracuse. He’d played on teams at the YMCA since he was four. If he wasn’t a basketball player, what would he be? He’d tried football but hated tackling other players. And that was all the coaches wanted him to do.

  “Well.” Benji faced Felix again. “I think you’ll make the team. I think you’ll be a starter.”

  “I hope so.” Felix pulled at the sole of his right shoe. It opened like the lower jaw of an alligator.

  “Felix, you’re a millionaire. Why are you still wearing sneakers with holes?” Benji was done talking about basketball and his slim chances of making the team. That was a future problem. He put a hand on Reggie’s shoulder. “Let’s go shopping.”