The lights of the ‘casino’ flashed in Jem’s eyes as he was dealt another hand. He had been coming here for years and had learned to ignore them and submerge himself in the game. There was nothing he enjoyed more than seeing the looks on his opponents’ faces as he laid down another royal flush. There were yells about how he was cheating and how there was no way he’d won yet another hand, but the dealer called it fair and declared him the winner.
Jem smirked as he gathered his winnings and called it a night, much to the protest of the other players who wanted a chance to defeat him and take their money back. Taunts followed him away from the table as he pocketed the money and walked away. Because this place was less casino and more card-tables-in-an-old-warehouse, there was little security. Allen smiled smugly to himself as he walked past security through the front doors.
It was a chilly winter night with snowflakes beginning to fall. Allen knew that Enzo would be waiting for him at their shared apartment off Cherokee Street. He never told Enzo where he really went at night, but all Enzo really worried about was whether Jem brought home a lump sum once in a while. On his walk home, Jem heard a scuffling in the alley just ahead. He was going to just brush it off as another drug deal gone wrong--those were common in this part of town--until he heard the voice.
“Now, you’re gonna get my money by Friday or you won’t see another--” A deep voice was snarling in the alley.
“Haru! Why don’t you let the poor kid go? We all know you’re ‘the alpha dog’ here. Aren’t there bigger debts to collect?” Jem had walked into the mouth of the alley to see his ‘friend’, Haru, cornering a kid of about 17. The poor kid looked scared out of his wits and Haru was absolutely fuming. He looked up slowly to the voice that had spoken to him.
“Stay out of this, beansprout. This isn’t your turf,” Haru growled. The kid tried to escape in his moment of distraction but Haru pushed him harder against the wall.
“Oi, the name is Jem.” This only seemed to make Haru angrier.
“I said leave!”
“Make me,” Jem said. It was a challenge and they both knew it.
Haru seemed to think better of dealing with the kid then because he let him go and instead turned to face Jem. His sleek ponytail was in disarray and he looked like he hadn’t showered in a week.
“You want money? Go win it yourself. The Domus Ortu Solis is just down the road. Great place, nice people. Maybe you could even catch a shower while you’re there. I hear the jackpot is won weekly. Who knows? This could be your lucky night.
“Two challenges in 5 minutes? You better slow it down or you’ll be sure to lose.”
Jem shrugged. His friend was starting to drop the ‘tough guy’ facade now that they were alone. “I like my chances.”
“Tch. You would, you swindling rogue. I bet you’re a top competitor there.”
“Ah, ah, ah. You of all people should know not to make a bet with me.” Haru visibly shuddered at the lightly referenced memory of the last bet he had made with Jem. He was still picking glitter out of his hair a month later. Jem didn’t comment on the name calling; he couldn’t deny something that was technically true. While he may be a swindler, Jem preferred the term ‘talented’. It had a better ring to it. A dangerous gleam came to his eye that, even in the dark of the alley, Haru couldn’t miss. “Although, if you really want to follow through on that…”
“My life is just fine without another one of your bets in it. I have other things to do tonight but,” Haru stepped closer to Jem and looked down at him with his finger pointed, “just know that if I catch you in there, your secret will be out. Enzo will know where you’re getting your extra money.”
Jem didn’t back down. He stood up straighter and said, “You tell them my secret, I’ll tell them yours. How do you think your precious Lena would react when she finds out you deal in illegalities at night? I may be a brogue but at least what I do is legal.” Ish. Okay, so maybe they weren’t exactly friends after all.
“Tch.” Haru sneered at him and turned to walk off, his ponytail swishing behind him. Jem took that as the best ‘goodbye’ he was going to get and continued on his way home.
Jem walked for a good twenty minutes before he opened the front door of his apartment to find Enzo passed out on the couch with all the lights on and Iron Man playing on the TV. How he falls asleep during action movies, Jem will never know. Jem turned all the lights and the TV off before going to bed.

The next morning, Enzo woke up to the familiar sounds of his roommate cooking. The house always smelled wonderful in the mornings but it was usually muted because of where is room is. Today, though, the scents were powerful and assaulted his nose as soon as he became conscious. Is Jem making breakfast in his room? he thought. Then he opened his eyes and saw that he was on the couch, not his bed. Enzo looked at his phone without really seeing it before he stood up and walked slowly into the kitchen, rubbing his back as he went; sleeping on the hard cushions of the couch did not do his spine any justice.
“Morning, sunshine,” Jem said as he looked up from the pan of hash browns he was tending to see Enzo stumbling in. Jem was fully dressed as if he was ready to leave at any minute. Enzo looked at the clock. 8:30? Why is he up so early?
“Morning,” he said. Enzo sat at the kitchen table with his red hair spilling over his face. His headband was nowhere to be seen so he just let his hair do what it pleased. Jem’s hair, on the other hand, was nicely combed and orderly. He was still groggy but he managed to croak out, “Have you heard from Lena lately? She said she was going to call.”
“Yeah, she called just a little bit ago, actually. I answered your phone and told her you were sleeping but that she was welcome to come over for breakfast. Hope you don’t mind.”
“No, not at all.” The ginger yawned before realization dawned on him. “Wait, Lena is coming here?!”
“Yeah. She said she’d be here at 8:45. Is something wrong?” Jem flipped the eggs and tended the sausage before looking up at his friend who had a look of horror on his face.
“8:45? As in 15 minutes from now, 8:45?” Enzo was in a full panic.
“The very same. Would you just tell me what’s wrong?”
“She and I are supposed to be going out today! I haven’t showered, I haven’t had coffee, I haven’t even put clothes on!”
“You better hurry up then. It’s almost 8:35 now.” Jem laughed at his friend. He still didn’t think his dating Haru’s sister was a good idea, but they were a good match for each other. Enzo nodded vigorously and jumped up. He ran to the back of the apartment where he turned left into the hall closet. “The bathroom’s on the right!”
“Shut up!” Enzo yelled back and Jem saw him run back across the hall. The water started running shortly after. Jem chuckled to himself as he continued to cook. Lena had actually said that she might be running a few minutes late, but at least now Enzo would be ready on time. Last time was a disaster; Jem told Enzo that company would be arriving at 6 and he apparently heard that as “Get in the shower at 6”. Long story short, he came walking out of the bathroom and met Jem’s parents for the first time in a bath towel.
Jem’s phone rang and he looked at the caller ID. “Why is Haru calling me?” he muttered to himself. He hit the phone button and held the device up to his ear.
“Haru?”
A slurring and dazed voice came from the other side, “James, you gotta.”
“What? Are you okay?”
“You gotta.” Haru sounded out of breath. Something was wrong. Very wrong. There were ambiguous noises in the background.
“I have to what? Haru, where are you?”
“Solis.” Solis? He must mean the Domus Ortu Solis.
“You’re at the Domus?!” Jem slapped his palm to his forehead and made an annoyed sort of grunt. “I knew it was a bad idea to tell you about that place.”
“You gotta helfmeh.” The slurring was getting worse; his words were getting steadily harder to understand.
“I know, I know. Give me 15 minutes. I’m coming to pick you up.”
An odd noise came from the other side that sounded like a groan. Serves him right. If he’s hungover again, Jem wasn’t going to take pity on him again. The first couple times is one thing, but now it’s ridiculous. Lena wouldn’t be happy.
Jem walked down the hall to the bathroom door where he stopped and pounded on the door. A muffled “What?” came through the din of the water.
“I’m going to pick up Haru. He’s having another one of his days. I’ll finish the cooking before I leave. You good here until Lena or I get back?”
“Yeah. See you in a bit!”
Jem proceeded back to the kitchen where he turned off all the burners and the oven and put the food on plates. He grabbed his jacket, a blanket for Haru, and his keys as he walked out. When she got here, Lena could just let herself in with her copy of the key and hopefully Enzo would be ready for guests this time.

Jem pulled the car up on the front curb of the Domus Ortu Solis and put it in park. The make-shift casino looked strange in the daylight, as if it were bleached and abandoned. Jem turned the car off and got out carefully; there were all kinds of sketchy characters around these parts and he didn’t particularly want to have a confrontation. The interior was dark but there was a lump of old clothes and trash on the front porch, leaning against one of the pillars.
He retrieved the blanket from in the back of his car and trudged through the cool wind up the front steps. As he approached the lump, Jem realized that it wasn’t old clothes and trash, but Haru in a state much the same trash would be. He was laying in the cold, for one thing, and when Jem approached him, he looked like his brain wasn’t functioning at all.
“God damnit, Haru.” Jem said irately. “This is the third time this month.”
“I know,” his barely conscious friend replied. He sounded guilty but he was probably in too much pain to care. A night like he probably had, he would have a migraine for a week.
Jem helped him stand up and wrapped the blanket around his shoulder. He lifted Haru’s arm over his shoulder so that he could help him walk to the car and they left the portico. They stumbled together to the car and Jem shoved his friend into the passenger seat and handed him the seatbelt, expecting him to do it himself. Haru looked up at him with confusion but Jem only raised his eyebrows. His lips were pressed into a fine line with annoyance as he turned away and shut the door. He got in on his own side and began driving. He intended to just take Haru to his place to let him recover for a while. His sister could deal with him later.
The drive was running pretty smoothly until Haru said, “I lost everything.”
“What? You lost what? Your mind?”
“No. The fortune. I lost it all.”
Jem slammed on the brakes. The car skidded to a halt in the middle of the road. “You what?” He was still trying to wrap his mind around what Haru had just said. He didn’t even know that his family had a fortune to lose in the first place.
“I was in there all night and some guys made a bet with me. Of course I couldn’t turn them down. It was only a couple rounds and I...bet too high. They said that if I won, they would match my money.” He sounded guilty and for good reason. If he really lost as much as he described, things were going to be really bad for him in the coming weeks. Lena would not be happy.
“So, first, you stay out all night and get drunk,” Jem began as he started the car, “then you call me at 8:30 in the morning, hungover and tell me to come pick you up at the most notorious gambling house in the city? Then, to make matters worse, you claim that you lost the entire family fortune in one night because of a bet?”
Haru nodded. They didn’t say anything more the rest of the drive.

Enzo was just walking out of the bathroom when he heard Lena walk through the front door. At least he was dressed this time. His hair was in disarray, but it was better than this morning. Lena looked up when she heard the door open and waved as Enzo walked into his room. She sat on the couch and waited. What a welcome party. Jem wasn’t here and Enzo had retreated to his room before he’d even said hello.
The apartment smelled like food. She wandered into the kitchen and found plates of food that were no doubt prepared by Jem. Enzo came walking back down the hall with his hair combed back and his black headband on.
“Hey, Lena,” he called to her as he plopped down on the couch.
“Hi, Enzo. Where’s Jem?” She was pouring a glass of juice.
“He’s out picking up your brother from somewhere. Apparently he’s ‘having another one of his days’. Have you heard from him lately?” He folded his arms behind his head.
Lena appeared in the archway between the living room and the kitchen with a glass or apple juice. She took a sip. “Who? Haru or Jem?”
“Haru. From the way Jem talked about him, he was in bad shape.”
“Oh dear. Not again. I hope he hasn’t gotten into as much trouble as he did last time.”
That’s when the front door swung open and Jem stalked in, followed slowly by a very disoriented Haru. He was wrapped up in a blanket and was bent over as if he were an old woman. Jem threw his keys on the table and greeted Lena with a smiling face. Enzo received the same treatment. Haru, on the other hand, was rudely directed toward the couch where he sat down next to Enzo.
“Alright guys! I’m back! Let’s eat.”
“It’s amazing how you can be so angry at someone and be so carefree and kind to others. Jem, I don’t know how you do it,” the ginger said in shock as he stood up.
“That, my dear roommate, is called being a people person. And,” Jem directed his next words harshly at Haru, “not hungover.”
Lena sighed. “What did he get into this time?”
“I think that’s for him to tell you. Come on, Haru. Would you like to share your adventures with the class?”
Everyone in the room looked at him expectantly.
“Well, last night, I was in a tough spot and went to the Domus,” he started, hoping that his friends would leave it at that and let him lay down. He needed to recover from this headache soon or he was sure his head was going to split right down the middle.
Jem began making a plate of food for Lena since she didn’t look like she was moving from her spot anytime soon. “And?”
“And I had a few drinks and played a bit of poker.”
Enzo looked at him in confusion. “There’s more to this story, I know it. What did you wager?”
“Oh, no. You didn’t bet our inheritance, did you?” Lena cried from her spot in the dining room. She sat down at the table and Jem put the plate of food in front of her. She muttered a quick ‘Thanks’ before burying her face in the hands. When Haru didn’t reply, she said, “You did, didn’t you? And you lost it.”
“Yes, he did. I’ve warned him about this time and time again, but he still made a bet and lost everything.”
Enzo was quiet for a moment before he said, “Say, Jem. You know how to play poker, right?”
“Yeah, but I’m not casino-good,” Jem said. He didn’t want his friends to know he routinely gambled in the very same place Haru did last night. He knew they wouldn’t approve of his alternate source of income.
“Maybe you should go out for it. You know, try your hand in a couple rounds, betting small amounts at time until you win it back. God knows neither of us can play cards.”
“I guess I could, but I can’t guarantee anything.”
“Great! Then it’s settled. We’ll go tonight. You hear that, Lena? We’re going to get your money back.”
Lena just groaned from the table; it was clear she didn’t actually think this would work.
“Go lay in my bed, Haru. You’re falling asleep. There’s excedrin in the cabinet and a water bottle on the nightstand. Go take care of yourself,” Jem called across the room. He was worried about tonight. Even if no one recognized him when he walked in, there was no way Enzo wouldn’t be suspicious of him winning every round. But if he lost the rounds, none of the money would be won back and he would look like a fool. He was hungry before, but didn’t really feel like eating anymore.

Night came quick and Jem was just getting dressed in his button down and slacks. As dingy as the Domus Ortu Solis may have looked on the outside, it was a poker den of fair quality within. There were different sections for other games, obviously, but poker--all forms of it--was the primary game played there. No one dealed in chips--the system was too easily cheated here--but in cash. Jem pulled a healthy wad out of his pocket and counted it, making sure that it was enough to bet and win off.
Enzo walked into his room, dressed similarly. “You ready for this?” he asked.
“As I’ll ever be,” Jem lied smoothly. The bad part about all this is that he found that he had no problem lying to his friends. He’d been doing it for years and it had just become so natural that he hardly noticed it. On the one hand, he felt like he should feel bad for lying to all of them all these years, but on the other, Haru had never had a problem with it either. But did he really want to have anything in common with Haru? Did anyone?
Enzo lead him to the car and drove him to the renovated warehouse. There was a fair crowd tonight and Jem thanked his stars that he went by an alter ego here. In the Domus Ortu Solis, he was Oren Falmino, and he could hear people beginning to call that name even as he stepped out of the car. Jem had gathered quite the reputation here; everyone had at least heard the name and knew how he played. Many thought Oren Falmino impossible to beat, and maybe they were right, but that never stopped them from trying and betting every dime they carried. Often times, it was easy picking for Jem, but now that he was here with Enzo--Lena had decided to stay at home and take care of Haru--people were beginning to talk. Who is that with Oren? An apprentice? A friend? Something more?
He lead Enzo inside, already adopting his casino attitude; it was one of confidence, secrets, and intelligence. There was no way anyone was going to catch anything through this poker face. Jem made his way to his favorite table with Enzo following close behind. This table always had the highest bets and the loosest decks. The lights were flashing and Enzo was fidgeting like an over excited 5 year old who was told to sit down in a carnival. Jem took a chair at the table and Enzo followed suit, albeit slightly behind him.
Some of the other players snickered at Jem when he sat down. It was apparent they didn’t know his reputation and thought he was a newbie on his first or second night there.
How wrong they were.
The first couple hands passed without event and the pool grew. Enzo started to get nervous when Jem pushed in the remainder of the money he had brought with him. The other players, still thinking he was going to lose easily, threw more of theirs in. That’s when Jem activated his ‘casino-mode’. His full pokerface went up and the lies slipped easily and the cards seemed to always work in his favor. While shocked at his third winning round in a row, the others simply brushed it off as beginner’s luck. At least, they did until Jem kept winning, and winning, and winning.
“Hey, kid. There’s no way you’re winning this much just on luck. You play a lot or somethin’?” the bigger of Jem’s opponents said in a husky voice.
“Well, I played a couple times with my dad, but that was years ago,” Jem laughed after he said this in the most innocent voice he could manage. Enzo was getting progressively more confused. This wasn’t how Jem usually acted. Knowing him, he should be scared stiff in a place like this. Then, Jem turned to him and whispered, “How much did Haru lose?”
Taken by surprise, Enzo tried to remember back to his conversation with Lena as she was walking out the door earlier that day. “Um… I think Lena said he lost a hundred thousand?”
“Perfect. We’re almost there now,” Jem said with a small grin. He turned back to the table and put on his naively cheery facade again. “I need to get back home soon. Up for one last round?”
The other guys looked at each other and nodded. “We’re in,” the one with the dark hair confirmed.
“Great! I think it’s a good night for a risk, don’t you, Enz?” He glanced at his friend before shoving all his winnings thus far into the center of the table. Enzo looked shocked. How could he risk this? They had come so far and now he was willing to give it all up in one round? If Jem lost this, Enzo was sure Lena was going to cry.
“Jem what are you doing?!” he stage-whispered to him.
“Watch,” was the only reply he got.
The other men at the table, seeing Jem’s risky move, decided to pitch in more themselves. A couple other guys joined with their starting bets; with how many large bills were on the table, there was at least a hundred thousand between the 6 of them now. Jem grinned internally. It was time to really crack down.
The round started as usual but Jem appeared to be losing until the very end. He was the first to lay down his cards and revealed a royal flush. There was no combatting a hand like that. The other players gasped and a couple threw down their cards. The bigger guy from before stormed off. He knew that Jem had won and there was no getting his money back. The newcomers were trying to convince him to play another round, but it was getting late, especially after Jem’s adventures late the night before. He wanted to go home and split what extra winnings he had amongst his friends.
Enzo tapped him on the shoulder while he was gathering the pile and asked quietly, “How on earth did you do that?”
“That’s simple.” Jem turned to look at him and smiled widely. “I was cheating.” The innocent c*** of his head completed the look. No one would suspect that it was he who just confessed to cheating.
Enzo was taken aback. “You were what?!”
“Hush up. I’ll tell you more in the car. I have a bit of a reputation here, you know.”
“You what?! You’d better explain all of this on the way home. I’ll meet you in the car.”
With that, he stormed away toward the front of the building. He was clearly angry. Jem finished counting his victory money and pocketed it. he followed Enzo’s path out the doors. The car was waiting in front of the portico with his ginger friend sitting in the front seat staring straight forward. This was going to be a long ride.
Jem got in the car and buckled his seatbelt. He, too, stared straight ahead while Enzo began to drive. They were both quiet for a while before Jem broke the silence. “Good news is: we got a few hundred more than we needed. Bad news is: you now know my secret.”
“Yep.”
“And you’re not happy. At all.”
“Nope.”
“Care if I explain?” Enzo remained silent. “Enz?”
“My silence is your cue. Talk.”
“As you know already, my mother died when I was young and my father raised me. What you don’t know is that he was a heavy drinker and frequented brothels. We were a poor family so we couldn’t afford this kind of lifestyle on his wages. I was always left with the debts and I usually paid them back through working. That didn’t cut it forever though. Eventually they got to be too high and I started playing poker to try and win the pot. At 12 years old, I played my first competitive game of poker. I soon learned that playing normally wasn’t going to be enough either and that I had to up my game. That’s about when I started cheating. I got good. I was rarely caught. When I was, I either blamed it on someone else or claimed false accusations.”
“Okay, so why did you continue it after you left home?”
“The debts my dad racked up were all in my name because he exceeded the limits on all his credit cards and the companies wouldn’t let him apply for anymore. Being a drunk, he wasn’t clever enough to apply under a false identity. So he used mine. Now, I still have a bunch of debt, even years later, and needed an easy way to pay it off. If I used my paycheck, the interest would pile up faster and we would not be able to afford the apartment we have. Since gambling. however dishonest, is the only way I know how to make quick money, I’ve pursued it even more.”
“How long?” Enzo pulled up in the drive and parked the car in their spot but made no move to turn it off or get out.
“What?” Jem looked up at him. He hadn’t told anyone anything about his past other than the part about his mom dying and being raised by his dad.
“How long have you been gambling here?” Enzo’s voice was soft and monotonous.
“Oh. I never stopped. Not really. I went on a brief hiatus for a couple months a few years ago, but it’s been a constant part of my life since I was 12. It’s not an addiction, I don’t like the loud noises and bright lights of the casino, if you could even call the Domus that; they bother me quite a lot, actually. I do it out of necessity. So that we can live here and I can remain in good standing with credit card companies. You’ll want to buy a new car someday, right?”
“Fine. I understand why you go there, but why didn’t you tell any of us? Lena and her family are wealthy; they could have helped you out. I could have set aside a little bit of my checks to help. We’re your friends. That’s what we do.”
“I know, Enz. I just didn’t know how you would react. Besides, we’ve made it this far on it.”
“You don’t feel the slightest bit guilty for cheating those guys out of their money?” Enzo was giving Jem some serious side-eye.
“Not really. I mean, I used to, way back when, but not so much anymore. They should know going in that they could potentially lose everything in one night. They’re the ones that wager it all.”
Jem made a move to get out of the car and Enzo followed suit after turning it off. He seemed to be mulling over what Jem said. At times, he would look up as if he wanted to as Jem something, and then seem to catch himself and lower his gaze again. Jem unlocked their front door and let the other walk in first, who proceeded to sit on the couch. Meanwhile, Jem was making tea for the both of them. He was carrying in a tray with 2 mugs and a plate of cookies on it when Enzo asked, “How did you do it, anyway? With all the people around, there’s no way no one  saw you stack the cards or something.”
“That’s because I didn’t stack the cards. I keep some in my sleeve and when it’s my turn to draw, I allow one to slip into my hand and no one is any the wiser.” He was making hand motions to help demonstrate the trick to Enzo.
“And your ‘reputation’?”
“Oh, yeah. I go there actually, quite often. Don’t worry though. I use a pseudonym while I’m there so they can’t track me if someone gets particularly salty about a lost match. I’m known as Oren Falmino and, at this point, just mentioning the name will either get you beaten, a blank stare, or unlimited access to all the VIP areas. There is literally no in between,” Jem explained as he fixed his tea. “Not that you probably plan on going there anyway. You looked scared stiff the entire time we were there.”
“I think I’m good, but your methods are interesting. Maybe you could teach me how to play, but without cheating? I could maybe try my hand then.”
“I can teach you whenever.”
“So you don’t feel bad at all about how we got the money?”
“Nope.” He looked the way he claimed he felt, too. Jem’s face was completely indifferent to the matter. He looked more like he was planning which table to scam next time than about his unethical methods for retrieving money.
Enzo looked down into his lap and Jem pulled the large wad of cash out of his pocket and handed it to him. “I kinda feel bad, but at the same time, Lena and Haru really need this money. How much did you say there was?”
“A few hundred over a hundred thousand. There’s enough replace Haru’s money and then leave a small portion for each of us. You up for it? I can ask Lena to come over for breakfast again tomorrow morning and we can give her her money then.”
“Yeah. we can do that. I think she has to work at noon, though. You best tell her to come over early.” Enzo took a drink of his tea and laid back on the couch, his arms folded behind his head.
“Great. I’ll do that and then go to bed. You know my ears are sensitive and that all that noise never helps a headache.” Jem took his phone and began to walk away, calling “Goodnight!” over his shoulder. It was only about 10 but he was overly tired already. It had been a long day, but it ended mostly well. Enzo had taken in a lot of information tonight and needed some time to mull it over for a while. Jem was sure he would at least form a firm opinion on it by the morning and texted Lena before laying down to go to sleep. He slept lighter that night; ‘coming clean’ about his double life had lifted a great weight off his chest. Even though he still had tens of thousands to pay off, he felt better about not having to lie to his friends anymore. As Jem drifted off, he decided that he would tell Lena tomorrow, seeing as Haru already knew. There was nothing he could do about it now, however. His secret was out and he would just have to live with the consequences when they came.