The night in Las Vegas was very beautiful and cool, neon lights glowing, high-rise buildings taller than most mountains, giant screens playing looping ads for millionaires, and expensive casinos full of rich people.
Something was odd on the street: a boy walking alone in the streets of Vegas filled with sweat ragged clothes sticking to his body.
A man walked passed him muttering "pathetic" cause of how bad he looked, his stomach grumbling filled with hunger as he hasn't eaten, Liam phone ringed checked his phone saw bunch of missed calls from his mom
Missed call (9)
Unknown call (2)
Mom (6)
Liam checked his bank balance cursing "Fuck me man living in the city of luck and still broke" his account nearly empty then he said to himself I guess I am going on another hunger strike today.
Liam's life wasn't always like this, everything was better before his family moved to Vegas, still remembering his mother and sister smiles but now his sister is sick and mother working double shifts.
He cursed remembering the unfortunate father that caused everything, immediately after moving to Vegas started gambling, got addicted to it then died slowly to misery and alcohol
Checking his phone
Hospital Bill Due: $75,000
His phone buzzed opening it he saw a message notification from an unknown number.
24 hours ,Pay $20k or we take your mum
Liam's jaw tightened. Why couldn't he get a normal job?
He'd tried everything. Construction got laid off, the restaurant was sent off. Even being a male prostitute didn't work out. His father believed he could beat the system and that risk destroyed their family, Gambling addiction ate him, first the savings then the house, his dignity. The night he lost everything at a high roller table
They found his car abandoned near the desert highway two days later.
Liam never saw the body.
I pushed through the employee entrance of a small casino nothing like the glamour of Caesars Palace or the Venetian, the place reeking of beer and regret
I worked part-time as a floor assistant. Not a dealer, Management just the loser that serves chips, drinks and receives insults
Hey! A voice snapped.
A man in Expensive suit waved me over, diamond watch flashing
I forced a polite smile asking what can I get you sir?
The man looked at me up and down insulting me. "You look like another broke Vegas rat. Bet you gamble your paycheck back to us "
I looked at him with a bored smile on my face but internally raging
Feeling powerless.
I wanted to smash the table. To wipe the smirk of the fat freakshow face instead I nodded and walked away silently.
After my shift, I sat on a nearby bench behind the casino opening my wallet and saw a $150 bill.
That was it
The money was meant for my groceries. Gas money and also to visit my sis Emily
I stared at it for a long time
If I can win, I could buy her medicine.
I stood up
Instead of walking toward the bus stop, he turned toward a smaller casino wedged between pawn shops and liquor stores.
The sign flickered weakly. Half the letters were burned out.
Inside, cigarette smoke formed a permanent cloud. Old slot machines groaned with metallic wheezes. A drunk man argued with a machine like it owed him money.
This wasn't glamour.
This was the underbelly.
Perfect.
I sat at a blackjack table.
$150 on the felt.
The dealer, bored and chewing gum, dealt the cards.
First hand—win.
His heart jumped.
Second hand—push.
Third hand—another win.
My breathing quickened.
Maybe tonight was different.
Maybe
I doubled down on the fourth hand.
The dealer flipped her final card.
Twenty-one.
Silence.
She dragged his chips away with indifference.
"Better luck next time."
Four words.
They hit harder than anything
His last dollar vanished across the green felt.
Just like my father's.
Outside, the lights felt crueler.
His phone rang.
Hospital.
His stomach dropped.
"Mr. Reyes," the nurse said gently. "Emily's condition has worsened. We need payment arrangements within forty-eight hours or treatment adjustments will be necessary."
Treatment adjustments.
He knew what that meant.
He ended the call.
The Strip glowed in the distance—bright, beautiful, untouchable.
Liam stood still while crowds moved around him.
Forty-eight hours.
He had nothing.
Edge of the World
He found himself climbing the stairs of a rooftop parking garage overlooking the city.
Each step felt heavier.
At the top, the wind was stronger. The city stretched endlessly—light devouring darkness.
He walked to the edge.
Below, cars flowed like rivers of fire.
His father died a loser.
He had become the same.
He failed his mother.
He failed Emily.
He closed his eyes.
One step forward and the pressure would end.
The noise of the city blurred.
The wind stopped.
The neon lights flickered.
Glitched.
Time froze.
Midair confetti from a nearby club hung suspended like stars.
Even his breath paused.
Then
A mechanical voice echoed inside his skull.
Ultimate Gambling System Activated.
His eyes snapped open.
The world shimmered.
Probability Vision Unlocked – Level 1
Symbols flashed across his vision like holographic code.
Beginner Mission: Win $1,000 in 6 Hours.
His heart pounded.
Failure: System Shutdown.