When you help others, you actually help yourself. Research has found that doing good things can give positive feelings, gratification, and an overall increase in happiness. But there’s a less scientific but true phenomenon of “what goes around, comes around.” When a person puts good into the universe, it finds a way back to him. In this case, Thomas goes out of his way to help a drunk man in his cab get home. Then he finds the man’s wallet left behind.
“One Last Passenger”
Thomas was eager to get home but his drunk passenger wasn’t helping. About half an hour ago, Thomas calculated that he could take one more passenger into his cab before heading home. Curt has been begging him for driving lessons ever since he turned 16 a few weeks ago. But Thomas pushed it off. He used to work as a personal driver but lost this position when his client moved across the country. Thomas had to increase his hours driving his taxi to make up the difference. The last thing he wanted to do at the end of a long day is more driving. However, he promised a lesson to Curt that night. It was hard to say no to Curt. The family struggled financially so Curt never asked for much. Whatever he did ask for, Thomas wanted to give him.
But this last passenger refused to leave the car. When entering, he had given Thomas an address in a nice neighborhood, but when they arrived, he insisted this wasn’t his house. He slurred so much, Thomas almost didn’t catch his second address. At first, Thomas told the passenger to get out of the car, to stop wasting his time. But then he saw how upset the man was and agreed to drive him to the second address, which delayed him another hour. The man was so intoxicated, Thomas ended up getting out of the car to walk him up to the front door. After going so far out of his way, this man better get inside safely. He thanked Thomas profusely but he was already thinking of ways to make his lateness up to Curt.
A Freak Injury
In the end, the driving lessons had to be postponed anyway. Curt made it into the football team, and the practices made him come home later. Thomas rearranged his shift so it’ll end at the same time so they could drive together after. In fact, on the day of the first lesson, Thomas came home a little earlier; he didn’t want to make the same mistake of picking up “one more passenger.”
However, Curt didn’t show up. Finally, Thomas got a call from his football coach. There was a freak accident and Curt was badly injured. Thomas and his wife, Jasmine, immediately rushed to the hospital. Curt had suffered from a severe knee injury. The doctor explained he would need surgery and physical therapy, but he should be able to recover eventually. But the road ahead would be long and difficult. Thomas and Jasmine told the doctor to do whatever their son needed, but they were also worried. Their insurance wouldn’t cover all of the incoming expenses. As the couple sat down in the waiting room, their minds raced with ideas on how to get the money, perhaps more shifts, loans, some more side jobs, what could they cut from their already frugal budget? Their prospects looked bleak.
Thomas had left his wallet in his car, so he returned to the parking lot so he could get their insurance information. He prayed the insurance would miraculously cover all of the costs but he wasn’t optimistic. But in his backseat, he noticed a wallet that wasn’t his. Looking inside, he realized it belonged to the drunk passenger, who had somehow managed to drop it underneath the seat. The man’s name was Sam Huckley and his wallet was packed with $1600 and a few credit cards.
Returning the Wallet
But Thomas did not give in to temptation. He returned to the hospital to find Jasmine on the phone with her close friend. The nurse explained it would be a while before they could see Curt, so with Jasmine’s permission, Thomas left to return the wallet. Hopefully, the drive would take his mind off things.
Sam didn’t recognize Thomas but his eyes widened when he saw his wallet. He thanked Thomas, adding he didn’t believe the wallet would ever return to him. He also apologized for his drunk antics; that day, he learned that his wife was cheating on him with his chauffeur. Devastated, he went to the bar and realized too late he needed to call a cab since he had fired the driver. And in his drunken state, he had given Thomas his home address, instead of his friend’s address where he was staying. He was near hysterics when he thought he’d have to see his cheating wife again.
Thomas was glad he didn’t leave him at the first address. But when Sam invited him in, he said he had to go, explaining his wife was waiting for him at the hospital. Sam didn’t let him leave until he learned what had happened to Curt. He tried to pay Thomas but Thomas refused to take payment for a good deed.
However, Sam wasn’t going to allow the favor to go unreturned. He reached out to his contacts at the hospital. They couldn’t disclose any information about Curt or the family but Sam pulled strings to put his card on file so all of the charges would be paid by him. He asked that the staff would pretend the insurance covered it.
A New Job, A New Life
At first, Thomas and Jasmine bought it. By some miracle, the surgery was covered. But they knew for a fact that physical therapy would not be covered. So they were surprised when the administrative assistants were never asked for payment. They insisted all of the sessions were already paid in full. Thomas contested this until one of the nurses showed him her computer screen where the credit card information was filled out. There, in black and white, was an unfamiliar card number but a very familiar name.
Thomas, Jasmine, and Curt — who was already well on his way to a full recovery — came to Sam’s friend’s house to thank him. Sam was no longer living there, but the friend redirected them to his new address. There, Sam invited them in and brushed off his good deed, saying Thomas had helped him, even more, when he saved him from embarrassing himself in front of his cheating ex. Then he gave Thomas an appraising look and explained he has been struggling to find a new personal driver he could trust after being burned by the last one. He offered Thomas the job with better pay and benefits than his old position ever did.
Thomas agreed and not only did he and Sam become work associates but good friends. After Curt fully recovered, Sam came to cheer for him at his football games. And when Sam married his second wife and lifelong partner, Thomas was one of his groomsmen. Most importantly, Curt got his driving lessons with Thomas and eventually got his license.
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