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The company paid well, as well as could be expected in this day and age. His job certainly wasn't very difficult, and he got plenty of exercise and sunshine to boot. But, like any middle-classed American, he was unhappy with his lot in life, always reaching for that brass ring that felt out of reach. Daniel lived in the city and didn't need a car, but he saw plenty of fancy vehicles as he walked around town; he wanted one so badly just to be able to drive down the street and let others be envious of the 'BMW' tag on the trunk. He had bought into the dream, lock, stock and barrel. It didn't matter that he didn't need a car; he WANTED one, and a fancy one at that. As he reached for the handle on the glass doors to the building, he thought, "Perhaps that will be the first thing I buy."

The door swung outward and he deftly ducked inside. The air conditioner felt cool and refreshing after the hot sun. Walking to the elevators as he did every day about this time, he reached out to push the 'up' button. So far, so good. All he had to do now was hold in his anxiety. "Just a normal day", he lied to himself, "nothing to sweat about." As the elevator doors opened and the upward arrow 'dinged' to light up the stainless steel walls, he jumped directly in front of an exiting coworker.

"Sorry, my fault", he fumbled as the cooler smacked the man in the shins.

"Hey, slow down there buddy!"

"Sorry again, " he frowned as he waved one hand to apologize. The cooler shifted precariously from the other hand, almost slipping from his sweaty grasp. Daniel reached for it, just as the elevator doors started to close, and he pulled it inside. He really needed to be more careful with the cargo, especially today, his last day.

Alone in the elevator, he paused and glanced at the panel. 1:47; Sunny; 83 degrees. He reached for the '7' and it lit up at his touch. With his left hand, he raised the cooler as if to inspect it for damage. Holding it with both hands, he lowered it again in front of his thighs.