Beranda / Emotional Realism Cerita Pendek / Down Five Million, Heaven Sent Me Back / Bab 1 - Bab 10

Semua Bab Down Five Million, Heaven Sent Me Back: Bab 1 - Bab 10

10 Bab

Chapter 1

Lawrence Gellar swung the dice back and forth in front of my face. "Come on, man. You're not planning to take the money and run, are you? That’s a shitty move!"I jolted back to myself and stared at him. "What? Who won?"The other two people laughed, shoved me, and pointed at the dice in front of me. "Quit playing dumb. You rolled five sixes. That's the best hand on the table. You just cleaned all three of us out."I stared blankly at the dice cup in front of me, my mind racing. It looked like I had been reborn.Before I could process this, Lawrence tossed the chips toward me with obvious reluctance. He then swept the dice back into the cup with a crisp rattle and said, "I refuse to believe my luck is this pathetic tonight. How about we raise the stakes and make this a little more interesting?"As he spoke, he gave me a sleazy grin.In my previous life, I had repeatedly dissected every second of this game in my head. Despite that, I couldn't fathom how a casual two-dollar buy

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Chapter 2

The moment the words left my mouth, Lawrence immediately sat back down, the three of them trading looks of excitement."My bad," he said, feigning an apologetic tone. "I should've known better. We've been friends for a long time. I knew you weren't a coward."I waved a hand with feigned bravado and casually toyed with the chips I had just won. "Actually, two bucks a chip is pocket change. How about 100 dollars a chip with no limit?"Lawrence froze.In my previous life, they were the ones who had pushed for this.His face broke into a wide grin, flashing a row of yellowed teeth. "Not bad, Sebastian. It looks like your luck has turned. You're feeling brave tonight, aren't you?""It's just a game," I said, casually swirling the dice in my cup. "Win or lose, it doesn't matter as long as everyone's having fun."Lawrence rubbed his hands together. "We're still just comparing rolls, right? Since you're new to this, we won't make it hard for you."I nodded. That was exactly what I wa

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Chapter 3

Picking up on my silence, Lawrence shot me a look. "Why don't we call it a night? Look at that, one hand just wiped out your last few wins."I shook my head, grinning. "What does it matter? It's only a few grand. I'm sitting on millions from the relocation compensation."I caught the flicker of pure irritation that crossed his face, but he masked it quickly behind a smile. "I'm just looking out for you, man. Doesn't your dad still need money for his medical bills? I really think you should stop. Keep that money to find yourself a wife or pay for your dad's treatment."Lawrence and I had known each other for almost 20 years.In all those years, we were best friends. He knew me inside and out, especially how much I valued my pride, so he was deliberately using my own ego to bait me into playing.Winning that last hand was just his way of testing the waters.But the mention of Dad made my blood boil. In this life, I vowed to make him repay every cent and every life he owed me, wit

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Chapter 4

After everyone rolled, they all kept one hand pressed firmly over their dice cups. Since I had won the last round, I called first."A thousand dollars, no cap."The men exchanged knowing smiles. Including Lawrence, the three of them stayed in. His grin nearly split his face as he said, "Sebastian, don't take it too hard, even if you lose. You're a rookie. There's no shame in it."I kept my eyes locked with his and threw the words right back in his face. "There's no shame in losing. The only shame is trying to get out of paying."He chuckled and flipped his cup open, only to freeze the next second."What? How is this possible? This can't be!"I casually lifted my own cup. "Sorry. Five ones. Best roll on the table."A wave of panic rippled through the group. They scrambled to reveal their own dice, but not one of them came close.I scanned the table and said, "My luck really is something else tonight, isn't it? It's not much, though. Just a little over 100 thousand dollars from

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Chapter 5

Since I had won the previous hand, I was the dealer of the new round. I caught Lawrence signaling for a five of diamonds as the wild card, while the other two secretly worked together to swap the indicator card for the four of diamonds.I didn't let it bother me.Instead, I snatched up the indicator card and slammed it onto the table. "Seven of diamonds.""What?"The moment they saw the card in my hand, they shot to their feet. "How is that possible?"How, indeed?I pushed my cards forward and revealed my hand. "It's over. The seven of diamonds is the indicator, which makes the eight of diamonds wild. I started with four wild cards. I win."Lawrence's eyes were glued to the table, his face pale as he whipped around to glare at the man across from me, Noah Dane."A-A seven?" he stammered. "How is it a seven?"Noah was obviously panicking. He waved his hands frantically. "I-I didn't…"He was right, of course.He had slipped in the four of diamonds, but I simply waited until

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Chapter 6

Lawrence's expression stiffened. He quickly averted his gaze, guilt written all over his face. "What are you talking about?"I held up my phone, a cold smile cutting across my face. "That's fine. You don't need to understand. I recorded everything. The signals you used, the way you switched the cards—it's all right here in my phone."Upon hearing this, Lawrence lunged for the phone, but I kicked him away before he could reach me. "I already sent the video to a friend as backup. Deleting it from my phone won't help you."I stood up, leveling a finger at his face, letting my rage finally boil over. "Lawrence, I thought you were my friend. And this is how you repay me? By setting me up and conning me? Do you even have a conscience?"Pay up, now! Don't even think about getting out of it, or I'll make sure you spend New Year's in jail."Noah grabbed Lawrence by the arm, his voice frantic. "Lawrence, just pay up! Didn't your family get four or five million dollars in compensation? Besid

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Chapter 7

By the time I rushed into the Gellar residence, Dad had already lost enough that his face was flushed, constantly wiping sweat from his brow despite the biting cold.His expression was tight with panic and regret.The moment he saw me, he rubbed his hands together awkwardly and grabbed my arm. "Sebastian, I shouldn't have played. I really shouldn't have. It's only been ten minutes, and I've already lost several thousand dollars. Come on, let's go."I glanced at Lawrence, who was leaning back, casually counting a stack of bills and working a piece of gum. "I didn't know you played three-card poker, too," I said.He casually lifted his head, rolling the gum around in his mouth. "You got lucky at poker, but it doesn't mean that luck follows you everywhere."He whistled at a group of young guys with dyed hair sitting nearby. "Isn't that right, fellas?"They traded looks and burst out laughing. "Lawrence's the best at three-card poker. Every hand's a winner. He's got the best luck."

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Chapter 8

After saying that, Lawrence reached for the deck, eagerly dealing three cards to everyone.This time, I kept my eyes glued to his hands, tracking the rhythm of the shuffle and the subtlest movements. Still, I couldn't catch anything.When I checked my cards, I found three sevens—another three of a kind.Lawrence leaned back against the couch, casting a leisurely glance at me. "I think I'll take a page out of Sebastian's book this time. Let's make it 300 dollars."Dad's hand came down over mine, and excitement flashed across his face before he could hide it. "Sebastian, this one's yours!"Looking at Dad's behavior, I finally understood what Lawrence was doing. He was feeding me good ones, hand after hand, so I would think my luck had turned and keep calling until I fell right into his trap.One of the players called.When it came to me, I decided to test my theory. I took my time laying my cards face down. "I fold."The second the words left my mouth, Dad frowned and slapped his

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Chapter 9

Lawrence was experienced enough at running scams. There was no way he couldn't tell that the deck had been switched.By the end of the first round, his brows had knitted into a permanent scowl.The cigarette between his fingers had burned down to his fingernails and nearly singed him, yet he didn't react until the guy beside him said, "Lawrence, you're up!"Only then did he wave a hand, stub out the cigarette, and make a careless call.Beside him, his lackeys were trading frantic looks, their smug confidence having evaporated into pure panic.Sure enough, the new deck had thrown Lawrence completely off rhythm. Sitting across from him, I felt much more at ease.I played by instinct, and whenever I liked my hand, I made a bet without hesitation, watching Lawrence's expression darken by the second.This was a game of luck now, and mine was holding its own against his.After a few more hands, I had won plenty. I managed to reclaim the thousands of dollars Dad had lost and then some

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Chapter 10

The moment the other guys saw this, their hands shot up into the air as they scrambled to save their own skins. "Officer, this has nothing to do with us! Lawrence made us do it! He said if we played along, he'd give us a 40% cut!"The young man quickly pulled out his phone and showed the police officers his bank records. "It wasn't just the cash on the table! I also transferred money to them. They scammed me out of all of it!"Only then did I realize that Lawrence had started settling after every hand. He was probably afraid someone would switch the deck halfway through and ruin his plan the way I had yesterday.Even so, this worked out for the best.The evidence of his gambling was ironclad, and there was no talking his way out of this.The officers didn't hesitate, snapping handcuffs onto all four of them.Only then did Lawrence snap back to himself. His face flushed red as he struggled, leveled a finger at me, and cursed, "Sebastian, you gambled, too! Why aren't they arresting

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