Happily Never After // Larry Stylinson

3. Home

Must've missed that bit.

Louis didn't give a single damn about anything, not that he ever did. He left the store with a golden watch, which had the initials 'M.K.' engraved on it, whatever that meant. He knew it was very expensive, but he bought it anyway. After leaving the store, he immediately placed it around his wrist, loving the way it sparkled in the light. After going from store to store, he decided to head home after all, his feet aching and his knees wobbly. Fifteen minutes into walking back, he realised he must've taken a wrong turn, he was now in front of a white building, the glass doubled doors have a large, white 'G' on it. 'Golden Horseshoe Casino',  the sign suggested. As soon as he walked in, he was greeted by a buff, heavy man, with biceps that looked around the same width as Louis' thighs. The man crossed his arms when he saw Louis, eyeing him up and down before looking straight ahead, snapping the bubble gum in his mouth.

"Have you got a problem with me? 'Cause I'd very much like to you help you solve it." Louis growled, balling his hands into fists, his fingernails pushing deep into his palms.

The man just blew a bubble before popping, unfazed by Louis' presence. After a moment or two of silence between the two of them, Louis huffed before walking past him. "Just as I suspected, a shit coward."

He smiled to himself, proud to have stood up to that man. "Who does he think he is, exactly?" He scoffed, rolling his eyes before continuing down the lobby. Soon enough, he made it to where the fun began.

Immediately, he was hit with loud, energetic music, a variety of lights coming from all over the place. There were slot machines spread out all across the entirety of the area, huge roulette tables being surrounded by massive groups of people, poker being played down closer to the bar. Once his eyes landed on the bar, he quickly started walking towards it, very interested in what they had to offer.

Louis slapped his hand against the counter. "Tequila, the whole bottle, if you would."

—

Hours passed and Louis was completely wasted, though it didn't stop him from gambling, going from roulette, to BlackJack, to poker. He got lucky almost every time, girls cheering for him – and even a few men eyeing him, as well – but it didn't bother him one bit, he kept drinking and playing, he couldn't stop no matter how hard he tried, it was almost addicting to him. The adrenaline he felt every time he won big, the heated passion to keep going whenever he lost. It was insanely intense.

Though, eventually the croupier quickly caught up to him, seeing as he was too quick with counting his cards. "I'm sorry, sir, I'll have to ask you to leave."

Outraged, Louis threw all of the chips that were on the table onto the floor, the chips flying all around the place, his breathing rapid. "Like fucking hell!"

A few people turned around to watch the scene, but others were too busy paying attention to their own winnings and losings to care about anyone else around them.

One of the men at the table slammed his hand down. He grabbed Louis by throat, threatening him in his thick, Scottish accent with venom spitting through his teeth, or maybe it was just whiskey. "You've got a fuckin' problem, boy? You've 'eard t' man, get on outta 'ere before I kick yer arse!" He harshly threw Louis onto the floor, landing on his back,making the latter groan with pain. The large man was furious, with his face redder than a cherry tomato.

"Oi! Am I going to have to call the police, gentlemen?" The croupier shouted above all of the ruckus, veins popping out from his neck, but nonetheless, he contained his anger.

Louis got up, struggling to stand straight, dusting himself off with a glare piercing through the other man's face. "F-fuck you! This place isn't worth shit anyway." He retorted with a slur in his speech, flipping off the men with both hands, before leaving the building with nothing but a single black chip, a few cards in his pocket, and a half emptied bottle of tequila.