"Beginner's" Luck
Their eyes are like daggers poking into my soul. They stare for what feels like an hour before Donald speaks up,
"It's 10,000" he snorts,
"Perfect, that's exact how much I have," I exclaim,
"Deal him in, you're big blind" Donald responds.
The dealer sends out the cards. Big Slick, King-Ace, this power is amazing. One of the best possible starting hands. I am big blind so I am in on this hand even if I wanted out. I put 500 down and I wait for the first move. I watch the players place their antes and when it comes around to Donald he raises to 1000. The two players between him and I fold. Now its my turn to respond I double his raise and place it down. Out of the three players that were left only one remained. I personally couldn't care less about this guy, Donald was my real target. After the flop I'll bet an amount he won't be willing to call. He's got about 5000 left while Donald has nearly 3 times that. The dealer burns a card and throws down the flop. Two Aces and a King. The dealer waits on Donald's move. He checks, I see his check and bet 3000. The guy between us folds and leaves the table presumably to cash out for the night. Donald dons a coy smile as he calls my bet. He probably thinks this has been one big bluff. It's the first time the new me has been to this casino, I am currently a nobody. He probably also has the other Ace, if it weren't for the guaranteed win I would have backed out at the pre-flop raise. The dealer lets out the fourth card, a Four. Donald bets 5000, that's all I have left. I call,
"I'm all in," I proclaim,
The dealer lays down the river, its a Two. Donald checks, so do I. He shows his cards an Ace and a Three. I throw my cards face up Donald's smirk slowly fades as he realized his foley.
"Beginner's luck," I say collecting my chips,
Donald is furious, but he hides it relatively well as he gives the dealer some cash for 5000 more. The next couple games go similarly with me mopping the floor with Donald and by the end of the night I walk away with just over $40000 when I cashed out. My loan left me with 30000 with their exorbitant by the hour interest rates. I walk out of the casino 30000 dollars richer and emotionally stress free after pulling one over on not just the casino but also that dickhead Donald. Madelyn had left about 3 games in. I could see my past self reflected in Donald, his attitude switched from having fun with the game to needing to win. I need to find a place to sleep tonight. I take a taxi uptown to a posh hotel that charges $5000 a night for a suite. I open a bottle of champagne and relax on the balcony with a nice Cuban cigar as I take in the night scenery.