Boy Sees Strange Bag Left on Bank Floor, Hears Ticking from Inside – Story of the Day

A woman takes her 6-year-old inside a crowded bank to complete a pending task, unaware that her little one would find a suspicious bag in the corner of the building. Soon, she finds herself in trouble when a masked man reveals what's inside the bag.

Ryan slipped his hand out of his mother's grasp as he looked at the bank's jaw-dropping interior. He gazed wide-eyed at the glass chandelier hanging from the high ceiling that seemed to touch the sky while people waited for their turn in a queue.

The little boy was captivated by the sophisticated interior of the bank since it was completely different than what he saw at his school and the playground. This was the first time he had accompanied his mother to the bank.

While his mother, Melissa, told the bank employee she needed a new credit card, Ryan wandered across the crowded room, admiring the framed geometric artwork hanging on the walls.

As his tiny steps carried him from one end of the tiled floor to the other, he stumbled across a black backpack sitting in the corner of the room. Curious, Ryan sat beside the bag and inspected it closely.

"Everyone, get down on the floor!" his firm voice echoed inside the room as people panicked.

Although he couldn't recall where he had seen the bag previously, he felt it was familiar. While sitting next to it, the little boy could hear a soft ticking sound from the backpack, but he couldn't understand what it was.

Excited, Ryan rushed back toward his mother and tugged at her sleeve. "Mommy, mommy! Look what I found!" he exclaimed.

"Wait a minute, sweetheart. Mommy is busy right now," Melissa smiled at her son before continuing her conversation with the bank employee.

Disappointed, Ryan took a few steps from his mother and waited while standing behind her. He wanted to tell her about the mysterious ticking noise so she could help him open the bag.

A few minutes later, the little boy approached his mother again, desperate for her attention. "Mommy! I found something over there," he pointed towards the bag. "You have to see it, please! It's making a sound, too!"

"Ryan, for the love of God!" Melissa turned towards her son angrily, "Can't you see I'm busy?"

Feeling disheartened, the little boy slowly walked across the bank towards the bag and quietly sat beside it. A few minutes later, Melissa turned around to look for her son before her gaze landed on him.

As she walked towards him, she heard a ticking sound. Her confusion turned into fear upon realizing the sound was coming from the bag beside her son.

"Ryan, move away from the bag right now!" she instructed her son, her voice trembling with fear.

"Whose bag is this?" she asked everyone loudly while holding her son's hand. The tension in the air made her almost faint. She could feel her head spin while she looked at the people.

Hearing Melissa shout, a security guard rushed towards her to see what had happened. Upon seeing the unattended bag and hearing the mysterious ticking sound, the guard cautiously approached it. Drops of sweat trickled down his cheek as he held the cold, metal zip to open the backpack.

As everyone's hearts raced while they watched the guard unzip the mysterious bag, a man wearing a black mask emerged from the bank's restroom. "Everyone, get down on the floor!" his firm voice echoed inside the room as people panicked.

"This bag has explosives!" he warned everyone in the room before demanding the bank employees hand over all the cash to him. "Hurry up! Open the cash registers, NOW!!!"

Everyone, including Melissa and Ryan, ducked to the ground, shielding their heads with their arms, terrified by the masked man. Some women began crying in fear while the men mumbled amongst themselves.

Amidst the chaos, Ryan lifted his head, inspecting the unknown man. Suddenly, his eyes widened in recognition as his gaze locked on the golen pendant tied around the man's neck.

"Dad?" the little boy whispered, unable to comprehend why his father was robbing a bank.

Ryan's faint whisper caught his mother's attention. She immediately looked at the man while thinking about her ex-husband, trying to check if her son was right.

"Fred? Is that you?" she exclaimed, rising to her feet in astonishment.

Unable to bear the weight of his actions any longer, the man fell to his knees, tearing off his mask as he sobbed uncontrollably. He explained how his life had turned upside down after Melissa kicked him out.

"I was jobless for months before I had this sharp pain in my abdomen. I went to the doctor, and he told me I needed surgery. I was ill," he revealed as tears trickled down his cheeks.

"I didn't have enough money for it, so I decided to rob this bank," he continued as people gasped after watching him cry. "I had planned to turn myself in after the surgery. I don't mean to hurt anyone. And this bag? I kept a watch connected to an amplifier to scare people with the ticking sound."

Fred yearned to meet his only child all these years, but Melissa asked him to stay away. After kicking him out two years ago, she told Ryan his father had abandoned them, while Fred wished to watch his son grow up.

Listening to Fred's heartfelt confession inside the bank, Melissa's heart melted. "I'll pay for your treatment, Fred. You don't need to rob a bank," she said while Ryan quickly ran towards his father and hugged him tightly.

"I love you, Daddy, and I missed you so much," Ryan said while resting his head on his father's shoulder, wondering why his mother had lied to him.

Since the man had attempted to rob a bank, the police arrested him. In the following months, he served his sentence while receiving treatment for his illness.

While the incident allowed Fred to reconnect with his son, it made Melissa realize she needed to be more considerate about her son's safety. She had placed him in danger by not paying attention to him when he tried to tell her about the bag inside the bank.

After Fred was released from prison, he soon found a job and began spending time with Ryan, making up for the lost time. Meanwhile, the little boy grew up understanding the reasons behind his parents' separation. He accepted their complicated relationship and learned to love them despite their flaws.

What can we learn from this story?

• Never lie to your children. After parting ways with her husband, Melissa lied to her son, instilling hate in his heart for his father. She instantly regretted her actions upon learning what Fred went through after she kicked him out.
• Broken families are also families. As Ryan grew up, he realized living in a broken family was completely okay. He spent time with both his parents and learned to love them despite their differences.

Share this story with your friends and family. It might inspire them and brighten their day.

Click here to read another story about a hobo who wants to rob an older lady near an ATM but is stumped to see his mother's old pendant around her neck.

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone's life. If you would like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.