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Fritzoid was a usual chap. He dressed modestly and his physique was nothing to write home about. He spent most of his days on the information exchange waiting for some new information that he could hawk as his own and make a small profit that kept him in his single bedroom apartment. Fritzoid rarely went outside. He kept to himself in his apartment and didn't even know his neighbors. When he got hungry, he went to the local sandwich shop to have a simple meal. He liked to keep things simple, or at least, that's what he told himself.

It was a Tuesday. The lottery would be drawn that night. Fritzoid decided that he would buy a ticket. After all, a nice flow of money would be nice. He wasn't sure exactly what he would do with all $100 million, but he figured that he would think of something. Honestly, he would probably just continue the life that he had at the moment and think little of changing anything. He wouldn't always so desperately try to hawk information anymore. He'd be able to relax a little bit.

Fritzoid bought a ticket and walked into his single bedroom apartment. He laid the ticket next to his keyboard and logged into the information exchange. A new story was burning up the exchange. Taylor had broken up with her boyfriend in a very public show. This was important for two reasons. First, she was a very private person so something this public was a big change for her. She never walked with her boyfriends or was ever caught in public with them. The paparazzi always had the most difficult time ever figuring out who exactly she was dating. Secondly, this meant that she was now single and the tabloids could splash all sorts of good speculation about who the next beau was going to be.

Fritzoid decided not to partake in this celebrity obsessed chaos. He usually dealt in information about new processors, programming languages, circuit diagrams, and other electronics. There wasn't a very good return on this information, but it was enough to keep him in his apartment.

The night grew on and like clockwork, at ten o'clock, the lottery numbers were drawn. Fritzoid didn't pay any attention to them and simply went to sleep.

The next morning, Fritzoid awoke and logged into the information exchange. Apparently, someone had won the lottery. The more Fritzoid checked into the story, the more he found out that the ticket was sold at the gas station that he frequented. He hesitated, and then, he checked his ticket. Sure enough, he had won. $100 million. He subtly smiled. Most people would have probably screamed from the mountaintops that they had won, but not Fritzoid. He was a simple man and enjoyed a simple life. Now, he was guaranteed a simple life for the rest of his.

He put on his coat and walked outside of his apartment. The gambling center was a little ways up the street where he would have to redeem his ticket. As he walked towards the center, he thought about all the things that he would do with the money. However, nothing really came to mind. He could buy expensive food, but why bother? He could travel, but he didn't really like leaving his apartment. He could buy nice things, but he wasn't materialistic. No, he decided that he would just continue to live his simple life with an extra amount of money in the bank.

He walked into the gambling center, and there wasn't a line. He walked straight up to the front counter and presented his ticket. The gambling center lady looked at him and then at his ticket.

"This isn't another fake is it?" she said.

Fritzoid looked shocked. "No, it's the real deal. Why? How many fakes have there been?"

The old lady shook her head. "Too many to count. Everyone is trying to win that $100 million since the ticket was bought at the gas station down the street. Anyways, give it here."

Fritzoid handed her the lottery ticket.

She passed it under the scanner and sure enough, the metallic void echoed, "You're a winner!" She took the ticket back into the gambling center.

After a short wait, the gambling lady returned. "Now, how do you want the money? A lump some or annual payments?"

Fritzoid thought for a short moment and said, "Annual payments."

"Next, do you want your name splattered all over everywhere, or would you rather stay anonymous?"

"I'd prefer that my name was not released."

"Okay. Sign this form and jot down the bank account number and you'll get your first payment at the beginning of the month."

Fritzoid signed the paper and filled out all the information. He handed the paper back to the gambling lady.

"Thank you very much, and congradulations!" she happily chirped.

Fritzoid smiled and walked out of the gambling center. He retraced his steps back to his apartment and walked in putting his coat in the closet. He sat down at his machine and logged back into the information exchange.

He was finalizing a deal with JCN to give them the circuit diagram of their competitors for a small $100 fee when his screen lit up like a fireworks display. He canceled the alert and finalized the deal. He then opened up the alert. He had one set for anything that happened locally. Apparently, according to his screen, Taylor was spotted at a coffee shop not to far from his apartment.

Fritzoid was always fascinated by her pure business sense. It seemed like she had created a brand-name out of herself and the public ate it up. Everyone at least knew of her name, and millions bought her CD's and went to her concerts. Fritzoid decided that he'd see if he could find her since she was locally nearby. Hell, he was a millionaire now. Maybe he'd get lucky.

Fritzoid pulled his coat out of the closet and trudged outside. He aimlessly walked down the street around where Taylor was spotted and thought he'd just let fate work its magic. Not too far off the coffee shop was visible and an army of paparazzi showed up looking to take gainful shots. Fritzoid could tell that Taylor had long since scattered, probably as soon as the information came up on the exchange. He took a left away from the coffee shop and walked down a side street away from all the commotion. He rounded the corner of the side street when he ran into a figure in a trench-coat with a large hat and sunglasses.

"Umpf" said Fritzoid.

"Watch where the hell you're going!" said the mysterious figure.

Fritzoid took a step back. "I'm sorry. I didn't see--". It wasn't hard for Fritzoid to put together who this person was considering the events surrounding his encounter. "So, trying to get out of here?"

"Yes, are you going to hound me too?"

Fritzoid smiled. He pulled out his phone and hailed a cab. "Shouldn't be too long of a wait. This should keep you off the exchange."

"Thanks," said the somewhat flustered girl.

A cab pulled up and the mysterious figure got in. Before it took off she asked for Fritzoid's number, which he gave out freely. The cab took off over the horizon with its cargo in tow.

Fritzoid walked back home somewhat excitedly. Things seemed like they were turning around for him. Not only did he win the lottery today, but he also met Taylor. She got his number off of him. Of course, he had no way of contacting her, but he was hoping that she'd do something with his number.

He walked home and put his coat in the closet. He sat down before the exchange and browsed the rest of the evening. Then, he went to sleep.

His phone vibrated. Fritzoid awoke and looked at the phone, restricted number. He answered and was greeted by a melodious voice.

"Hey, thanks for your help yesterday."

"Oh, no problem."

"Can I treat you to lunch for the cab fair? It'll have to be at my place because--"

"You don't go out. I know. Sure, that would be fine."

"Alright, I'll send you the directions. Bye."

Fritzoid's phone lit up with the directions. He quickly showered and got dressed in something nice, but not too over the top. No coat and tails for this guy. He walked out of his apartment and hailed a cab. He gave the cab driver the directions and they were off.

Fritzoid arrived at the front gate to a modest house. You could tell that this was not just an ordinary house, but nothing really seemed to betray that the famous Taylor lived there. Fritzoid got out of the cab and walked up to the intercom. He pushed the red button and spoke clearly, "Hello? This is the guy from yesterday?"

The gate opened and Fritzoid walked into the complex. He arrived at the front door beyond the fountain and wasn't sure what to do at this point. He took a hold of the large ring in a brass lions mouth and gave the door a good knock-knock. He waited.

Soon enough, Taylor herself opened the door. She smiled widely. "Thank you for coming. I wanted to make sure that I repaid your kind gesture from yesterday. Do come in." She motioned him inward, and Fritzoid followed her into the house.

The house looked larger on the inside than it did on the outside. The decoration was elegantly simple, nothing was too over the top that you see in some mansions. Fritzoid wasn't sure that this place could be called a mansion. It seemed like a moderately large house, but still fell short of the title mansion.

Taylor ushered Fritzoid into the kitchen and indicated that he should sit at the kitchen island. He plunkered down into a high-chair and left his coat on. Taylor opened her refrigerator and pulled out a platter of food. Decorative yet sensible.

"I thought that something light would be nice for the time of day."

Fritzoid nodded. He didn't really care as he'd eat probably anything.

Taylor sat down next to him, and they both began working through the platter.

"So..." Taylor trailed off.

"Heh. So how's fame working out for you?" Fritzoid responded.

"Well, it's not exactly everything that I had in mind. It is a double-edged sword really. When I'm performing a concert and all of the fans are singing along or screaming, it's very exhilarating. However, when you get situations like with the coffee shop, you kind of just want to hold up, never leaving your house."

Fritzoid nodded. "I imagine that would take some getting used to."

They munched on the platter some more.

"So do you have a girl friend?" Taylor inquired.

Fritzoid coughed. "No, I live a pretty simple life."

"What does that mean?"

Fritzoid responded, "Well, that means that I'm an information broker living in a one bedroom apartment. I keep to myself and don't bother anyone."

Taylor smiled. "I'm like that in between shows. I just kind of hold up in my house and don't talk to anyone. Don't you get lonely?"

Fritzoid replied, "Well, no. Not really. It's kind of fixed in my mind that I'll be alone for the rest of my life. I've dated, but it just seems like no one meshes well with me."

"I know what you mean," said Taylor as she popped a cherry tomato into her mouth.

The platter was finished, and Taylor invited Fritzoid into the living room. They sat at opposite ends of the couch.

Taylor looked at him. "Tell me something outrageous."

Fritzoid paused for a moment in thought. "Well, I don't believe that anyone has the right to tell someone else what to do."

Taylor looked a little puzzled. "That's not so outrageous. I think most people would agree with that."

Fritzoid continued, "I mean like...ever though. This includes our elected officials, the police, everyone. What authority do they really get to have over us?"

"Well, we kind of all agreed to it, didn't we?" Taylor fired back.

"Yes, I suppose that we did. I just wish that there was a place where it wasn't the case. Someplace where I didn't have to worry about crime and could just live a typical life."

"Well, the police do a pretty good job of things as they are--."

Fritzoid interrupted, "No. The police are out of control. If you saw half the stuff I see on the exchange you'd want to reign in the police too."

"I see," Taylor replied as she looked at the ground.

Fritzoid took a deep breath. "I realize that not all police are bad, but it seems like giving someone authority like that is only looking for trouble."

Taylor responded, "So, what do you recommend instead?"

"I'm not sure."

"Alright then, what are your views on religion?"

Fritzoid smiled. "I love talking about religion. Personally, I am a Buddhist. I think that the teachings provided by the Buddha are supported by the progresses in science so far. I read this book called 'The Quantum and the Lotus' where a quantum physicist turned monk and monk turned quantum physicist converse. Inside, they explain how a lot of what Buddhism talks about is covered by science. I unfortunately forget the specifics, but if it interests you, I suggest that you pick up the book."

Taylor smiled. "I have respect for Buddhists. Personally, I'm a Christian, but I honestly haven't delved into religion all that deep. I was just raised a Christian so that's all I know."

Fritzoid looked back at Taylor. "I think it is one of the most fundamental things about life that you can ever search for. I mean, we're thrown into this world with little to nothing, and our duty is to figure out just what exactly is going on. Stop for just a moment and think to yourself, 'I'm alive'."

Taylor looked at Fritzoid and said, "I'm alive." She smiled. "I'm alive." She started laughing. "I'm alive?"

Fritzoid laughed too. "Exactly, how amazingly weird is it that you're alive? And supposedly you have to trust all of these people that tell you things about the universe, but do they really know what they are talking about? It all just seems so amazing to me that people walk through their entire lives without thinking about the really important stuff. I suppose it's not important to them, but it's the kind of stuff that is important to me."

Taylor sighed. "I think that this stuff is important too. I personally blame our culture. It seems like the answers are just freely given out to whomever wants them, but these answers just lead to more questions. Nothing ever gets fully resolved."

Fritzoid nodded in agreement.

The two sat there in silence for a few minutes before Fritzoid stood up. "I should probably get going." Taylor showed him to the door. "Call me sometime," she said. "I'd like to have more conversations with you about life. I don't have many friends that talk about this stuff like you do."

Fritzoid shook her hand and replied, "Of course. I'll give you a buzz sometime."

Taylor smiled as she shut the door behind Fritzoid. He walked outside and down the path towards the gate. At the gate, he pulled out his phone and hired a cab. The cab picked him up and carried him home.

Fritzoid walked into his apartment and sat down in front of the information exchange. He'd give her a call...sometime. A new friend.

Submitted February 17, 2015 at 08:23AM by hideall1 http://ift.tt/1Ej3foK hideall1