Brown Box

William is a very meticulous man. He had to be. His job requires keen observation and excellent recall of details. He is a known recluse and only goes out of his apartment once a month to get food from a local grocery. He buys the same food every trip: bread, butter, eggs, milk, and a single jar of strawberry jam. No meat. No vegetables. No poultry. No seafood. Just five items every month. Same brand too.

William is about 6 foot tall. His clean-shaven head is almost like someone who just joined the military. It looks like it was dark brown at some point but now there are hints of gray. He is probably in his mid-40's but nobody can really know for sure. William does not have any friends or relatives. No girlfriend or wife either. It was such a shame because William is a handsome guy. His striking ocean blue eyes always make people pause and do a double take. He never smiles though. Not even to children, or cats. Nothing makes William smile.

It was during one of these monthly trips to the grocery that something happened to William. Nothing drastic. Just out of the ordinary. There was something waiting for him at the door of his apartment. Something he never expected and never received. Ever.

William received a package.

The package was in a small, brown box. His name and address were written on it in a nice, cursive writing. A woman's handwriting. He lifted the box, and it weighs heavier than he thought. He was about to shake it and then saw the instructions on the side of the box:

a. Never shake the box. Ever.

b. Do not open the box. Ever.

William thought it was strange. There was not return address and no indication of what is inside the box. Even though he did not shake the box, he felt something move inside. He tried to put it near his ear but the loud blast of the cars passing by outside startled him. He knew he had to get inside the house. He has been outside far too long.

Once inside, he set the box down on the coffee table in front of his television. He opened his refrigerator door and placed the five items he bought from the grocery store. There were 5 shelves inside his refrigerator. Each item was placed on the shelf it belongs to, right next to last month's grocery that was still sitting in the refrigerator, uneaten.

William opened the cupboard and pulled out a cup of instant ramen. The entire cupboard was filled with instant ramen cups, chicken flavor. Shelf after shelf, same flavor. His garbage can only have ramen cups too. No indication that he ever ate anything that he buys in the grocery store each month.

William's way of life is bizarre to anybody who hears about it. Except, nobody hears about it because nobody really knows William.

He looked at the box sitting on the coffee table. He was really puzzled where it came from. Maybe somebody knows him? Nobody at his job even knows him. They deposit his pay in a weird bank account set up in the Cayman Islands under the name John Smith. Try finding a John Smith online and you will have pages and pages of information for random people.

William liked his anonymity. The box on the coffee table bothers him a lot. He started eating the ramen with his chopsticks. He learned how to use chopsticks while watching an Asian couple across the street from his apartment. He watched them everyday until a black van picked them up one sunny, Sunday afternoon. A few hours later, he saw cops pull up in the same spot and a yellow police tape surrounded the place. His job was done.

The small, brown box on the coffee table bothered him a lot. The cursive handwriting was a giveaway that a person knew his actual name and where he lives. It was not computer generated. It was personal. All the people who knew him personally are gone. Not voluntarily. But they are gone.

His current subject was a tall, blonde lady that works at the deli across the street from the grocery store where he buys his food. He watches her every month while he is buying food across the street. He reports what he finds when he gets home and then money is wired to him within 5 minutes of reporting.

He came back from his shopping trip an hour ago. They are already waiting for his report. He tried to vaguely remember the details he observed of the woman from his shopping trip. Except, all he can think of is the small, brown box on his coffee table.

He paced back and forth in front of his computer. He tried to jog the details from his memory. He has a mission to do. He must complete his task. It is not for the need to get paid. He is sitting on several million dollars. He does not need the money. However, he was hired to do a job. His reputation is on the line. He sat down and opened his laptop. He started typing the vague details he remembers from the trip to the grocery store.

She was wearing a blue, floral, long sleeved dress. Her honey blond hair was tied in a bun at the nape of her neck. She covered her hair with a net for sanitary reasons. Her make-up was simple, almost natural except this time she was wearing a red lipstick and smiling brightly at the leather jacket wearing guy in front of her. He cannot see what he looks like. Only the style of his jacket. It was very vintage leather with fringes. A biker perhaps?

He tried to think of other details, but the red lipstick struck him as odd. She never wore red lipstick. In the five months that he has been observing her, she never wore red lipstick. He made a point to emphasize that in his report. He read his report again then hit send.

Now his attention is back on the small, brown box sitting in the coffee table. He was about to approach it when he noticed that he received an email from the company. The email contained a single question:

"Are you sure she's wearing a red lipstick?"

He was a little annoyed at the question. How dare they question his observation skills. He promptly typed "Yes, she was wearing a red lipstick." Send.

He sat down on the couch and turned on the tv to the news. His eyes waiting for his cellphone to vibrate. Ten minutes later, he received notification that a million dollars was deposited in his bank account. It vibrated at the same time as the news about the deli exploding in a freak accident showed up on the screen. The only casualty was the blonde employee and a customer wearing a leather jacket.

He turned off the tv. Another job done.

He lifted the box and started pulling the tape in the opening. He heard a tiny sound from the inside. He opened the flap and said "Oh, hello there"

The End.