The Man in the Reservoir

Set atop the city’s old distributing reservoir, a bustling October morning offers a panorama of New York’s elite strolling along stone parapets, children in tow, while the black water below teems with glimmering pickerel. A chatty sophomore likens the scene to mythic rivers, drawing playful parallels to ancient Greek landscapes and the restless fish that flash like souls. The narrator captures this vivid tableau, hinting at the reservoir’s strange allure as a place for both society and solitary contemplation.

Into this setting slips a lone, determined man who has spent weeks pondering a forbidden ladder and the promise of a pike caught by a delicate wire. One moon‑less night he climbs the crumbling wall, descends into the water, and finds himself battling both the slippery fish and the cold stone as he fights to climb back to safety. His reckless venture, narrated with tense humor, sets the tone for a story that explores daring ambition against the still, reflective surface of the city’s hidden reservoir.