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He is happiest when he is at Carnegie Hall, a concert hall where he works as an usher. When he is not physically at Carnegie Hall, his thoughts remain there causing his school work to suffer. When his father finds out about his problems in school he has Paul banned from Carnegie Hall, taken out of school, and put to work. One day, while on his way to make the company's deposit, Paul decides to take some of the money and flee to New York to experience the life he feels he was made for. Unable to cope with the punishment for taking the money and being afraid of his father who is looking for him, he commits suicide at the end of the story. The central idea in this story is that it takes patience to accomplish a dream, and to not give up on it. Paul is very unhappy with his common life and does not want to end up working in a factory like his father. He creates stories to make his life seem great which results in him not having any friends in his life. To fill that hole he chooses to spend most of his time at Carnegie Hall. Paul really starts to "live" when he is ushering there and constantly dreams of living the life of the performers that he sees. Paul's father is a single parent trying to raise his children in a good neighborhood. He is a hard worker and trying to set a good example for his son. His father puts pressure on Paul by referring to a neighbor, whom he feels is a perfect model for his son to follow. Unlike his teachers, the people at Carnegie Hall have not given up on Paul and see a future for him. .
The conflict Paul faces is that he has a life he feels is wrong for him and he wants to live more exceptionally. Instead of working towards that dream by finishing his education and earning his way to the very top, he makes a foolish decision and loses everything. Paul feels that this decision is the only solution to his problems, and when he realizes this only temporarily fulfilled his dreams, he gives up and decides to take his own life.
