Down Five Million, Heaven Sent Me Back

Before the holidays, my old house was demolished by the government, so I received a settlement of almost five million dollars.

The next morning, Lawrence Gellar, one of my buddies who hailed from the same village, invited me to a game of poker.

Unexpectedly, not only did I lose five million dollars overnight, but I had also written an IOU note to Lawrence, claiming that I still owed him more than a million dollars.

Dad rushed all the way from home just to deliver the money that was meant for his treatment. But he relapsed into his sickly condition due to exhaustion, which resulted in his death.

Later on, Lawrence kept splashing red paint onto my home and caused a ruckus at my workplace every day. I couldn't handle his harassment at all, so I chose to commit suicide.

When I open my eyes again, I see Lawrence sitting right in front of me while yelling, "Why did I lose again? Since you're on a lucky streak, you have to play a few more rounds!"

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-in had wound up costing me over six million dollars.

It wasn't until much later that I finally realized Lawrence was the one who had been egging me on to double down.

The more I thought about it, the more suspicious it felt.

When I finally confronted him, he didn't even bother to deny it. He patted my cheek and grinned mockingly. "What about it? You hit the jackpot, and suddenly you're a big shot looking down on everyone. I didn't like your attitude, so I had a couple of guys set you up.

"But was that really all my fault? You got a few million dollars in your pocket and let it go straight to your head. You were the one who kept playing because you couldn't stand losing. How is that on me?"

I had broken down crying, screaming that he had gotten my dad killed. Instead, he laughed even harder. "You have no idea how funny your dad looked when he came begging me to let you off. Too bad you missed it!"

I was so furious that I punched him to the ground, but Lawrene called the police, accusing me of assault. That landed me in a cell for seven days.

After that, not only did Lawrence show up at my place every day to vandalize it and demand repayment, but he also made a scene at my workplace, resulting in my suspension.

Only then did I realize what a vicious snake my best friend was.

But by then, it was too late.

I had no proof of the scam, and my signature was all over those IOUs for over a million dollars.

Now, I wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

By the time I snapped back to myself, Lawrence had stepped in front of me, his lips curling into a mocking grin. "I'm not inviting you next time. You're way too timid and boring."

The memory of him bleeding me dry, of him indirectly causing Dad's death, and of him eventually killing me made my body tremble despite myself.

I glared at him, hatred flickering in my gaze, and slapped his hand away.

Lawrence shifted, clearly unnerved by the look in my eyes. He waved a dismissive hand. "Look, if you're too scared to play, just say so. We won't hold it against you. Why are you glaring at me like that?"

The other two at the table chimed in, "Cut him some slack, Lawrence. He finally got rich, so of course, he's going to guard that money like it's sacred."

"Exactly. It's the first time he's ever had a full pocket. Let him be a coward if he wants."

I let out a cold laugh.

These two were Lawrence's accomplices. Without them, he never would've been able to rig the game.

I slammed the dice back into the cup and smiled. "Who said I wasn't playing?"