The Day After the Casino

My head hurts. I can’t see anything, but clearly, I’m in my room. Only my box bed could give me this kind of comfort.
A pair of big green eyes pierces through the darkness. It’s tall, and those glowing eyes are the only thing lighting up the room.
“Holy crap! Don’t move, wait a sec!”
I start pounding the wall, trying to find the light switch. I hit it. A sharp click and the lamp flicks on… and that thing is… oh. It’s just Lorenzo.
“Why the hell are you in my room at seven in the morning?”
“You should be thanking me… You passed out in the middle of the casino last night… right in the middle of a game…”
I wasn’t paying attention. I’m too busy drowning my tears on the wall. Could’ve been a succubus, but nooo, just Lorenzo. Crap. Wait… in the middle of a game?
“In the middle of a game?! I lost?! What happened?! How much money?!”
“Relax… I won it for you… But it wasn’t easy… The heiress had a damn good hand…”
“Ufff, next time just start with the important part!”
“Man… How do you care more about the money than the fact you passed out?…”
Honestly, I’d forgotten about that part.
“Definitely a hangover… Speaking of which, can you give me a minute?”
I rush to the bathroom. I vomit a lot. Lost more than just fluids. My dignity, my soul… even my intestines might’ve come out if I didn’t need them to live.
My stomach growls. Did I not eat anything since last night? I’m going to have coffee. After that humiliation, the least I deserve is cheap caffeine. The house is tidier than usual; Lorenzo must’ve done something. Or maybe it’s just my memory failing me badly.
Sunlight streams through the window, illuminating everything. The beams reveal dust. Ugh, need to clean this up. But only after school. Lorenzo slithers after me like a snake.
“Didn’t know you drank…”
“I don’t, someone baptized my drink for me.”
“And… don’t you want to know who did it?”
“Why bother? It’s unnecessary effort.”
“If you say so…”
I sip my coffee while Lorenzo whistles, pacing back and forth. He starts speaking, then stops. He takes a breath like he’s about to drop a bombshell… then hesitates.
“Spit it out. It’s not normal for a Reaper to be in a casino at this hour.”
“Well… I… I don’t know how to tell you this…”
“Just say it.”
“So… uh…”
“JUST SAY IT, MAN!”
“Your father… he’s dead.”
The old man?… Not surprising. Owning a casino made him a target for plenty of people. Besides, his relationship with the other lords didn’t seem particularly friendly.
“You talk like I care.”
“Even if you don’t, you should care… you’re going to have to care…”
“No need to say it.”
“You’re the heir to the seat… you know you can’t ignore this…”
“You’ve always wanted to be one of the Ten Lords; if you want, I can give you the spot.”
“That’s not how it works… And my father would kill me if he knew…”
“Keep covering for me for a while, I’m too busy with my high school life.”
“I’ll do my best… But I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up.”
Lorenzo steps behind the fridge. Shadows swallow him; the floor beneath turns pitch black. He disappears for a moment. Seconds later, everything’s normal again.
Tears stream down my face… Did I really care about him this much? I didn’t even know. I can’t dwell in this melancholy; as he always said, “crying is unnecessary effort.”
I get dressed for school. This uniform is tight, so I always leave the tie loose to avoid suffocating. The weather’s definitely pleasant… chilly. I head to school bouncing along.
As I pass through the gate, I spot a crowd forming a circle in the courtyard. What would make teenagers, at the peak of their hormones, form a perfectly organized circle? I’m about to find out.