Page 56 of Reputation
They descended a small set of stairs into the main pit, wandering down the aisles and around tables, surveying what was on offer.Eavie wasn’t someone who gambled often—or ever—but since she was here, she thought she might as well have a bit of fun.
As she considered which of the many games she wanted to try, they ordered drinks from a passing server.With her gin and tonic in hand, she followed Molly to a roulette table, where she stood, watching as she sipped the cool cocktail.
Molly, apparently a big roulette fan, placed a bet right away while Eavie continued to watch, deciding whether she wanted to try it.
After a handful of rounds, Eavie decided to place a bet.She’d never played before but knew the basic concepts, and Molly filled her in on how to play.
“For your first turn, I recommend betting on the outside.The odds are better, and it’ll give you a feel for it,” Molly said, pointing to the outer squares of the inset table.“The boxes on the perimeter have higher probabilities.”
“Got it,” Eavie said, nodding as she considered what bet to place.Her eyes narrowed as she scrutinized the board.
Beside her, Molly let out a low chuckle.“Roulette isn’t a game you can calculate,” she said.“It’s a feeling.Just look at the board and place your bet on whatever box feels positive to you.”
Eavie bit her lips, the idea of doing something based on feeling utterly foreign to her.She always made her decisions based on sound logic and careful considerations.
Molly shook her head as she laughed again, seeing Eavie’s discomfort.“Come on, just try it,” she said, placing a token in her hand.
Blowing out a breath, Eavie fixed her gaze back on the table, trying not to focus too much on thinking and instead on feeling, as Molly had said.Taking a deep breath, she looked first at the color boxes.Red or black.
Letting her instincts come forward, she reached out and placed her token on red.A small smile pulled at her lips as her fingers grazed the green felt.She took another of her tokens and placed one more bet, this time on the even square.
It was strange, letting herself choose based on nothing more than feeling, but she found it pleasantly satisfying.It felt as if something had loosened in her mind, relinquishing control to her instincts.
The dealer called no more bets as he swept his hand across the table.The wheel spun as the ball circled the outside, everyone focused on awaiting the results.The ball jumped suddenly, bouncing across the wheel before it settled into one of the divots.
When the wheel stopped, the dealer called “Fourteen red.”
Movement began around the table as chips were raked in and doled out.The dealer pushed twenty dollars in chips back toward Eavie, her win doubling her ten-dollar bet.
Smiling, she gave Molly an excited look.“Okay, that was fun.”
Molly nodded.“See what happens when you give your mind a vacation,” she said, giving her a pointed look.
Eavie’s lips pinched even as she smiled.“Yeah, yeah,” she muttered, placing another bet on the table.
This time, she placed a five-dollar chip on thirteen-twenty-four and red.When the spinner stopped on seventeen black, she collected her fifteen-dollar win.
They continued playing for some time, the small pile of chips growing in front of both of them.Molly was more comfortable placing larger bets while Eavie continued with her small wins, slowly growing in her confidence to bet on the inside.Placing a twenty-five-dollar bet on eleven, black and even, she couldn’t help the little jump of excitement when she won a hundred dollars back.
“Okay, I’m going to stop there,” she said, collecting her chips into her clutch.
“Are you sure?”Molly asked, turning toward her.“We haven’t been playing that long.”
“Yeah, I’m going to wait, maybe play something else.”
“Do you mind if I play a little longer?”Molly asked.
“No, no, keep going.I’m going to go to the bathroom.I’ll be right back.”
Molly nodded, taking a sip of her vodka tonic.
Turning, Eavie picked her way through the crowd, lights flashing all around her.As she neared the bathrooms, she felt an odd sensation of being watched.Tingles snaked their way down her bare spine as she stepped around a young group of what appeared to be a bachelor party.All the men wore t-shirts that said, “Game Over: Kevin’s Final Round.”
Eavie shook her head, wondering why t-shirts like that always made getting married sound like the men were being forced into that life.If that was how they thought of it, they probably shouldn’t be getting married.That, and the fact that they looked like they couldn’t be older than twenty-five.
“Excuse me,” she muttered as she slid carefully between two of them.
They both looked at her, gazes unfocused.The one to her right with short blond hair gave her an overly enthusiastic grin.They were definitely several drinking hours deep.
