Life Is a Poker Game

Considering

Aileen said, "Patrick, don't go too far."

I said, "OK, I'm going to class. Bye."

However, I had just taken a few steps when Aileen's voice sounded behind me.

"...Daddy!"

I turned back. "Good girl."

But I didn't stop there.

Aileen was anxious and came after me. "Patrick, I have already done what you asked.

"So you can give me the money, right?"

I said, "I didn't promise you that.

"I said I would think about it."

Aileen said angrily, "Are you trying to make a fool of me?"

I scornfully said, "Good girl, it is such a large sum of money.

"Dad does need time to think.

"And by the way, I may need one or two years to think about it."

Aileen said harshly, "Patrick, if I don't see the money within two days, don't expect me to care about you anymore."

I didn't bother to pay any more attention to her and walked straight towards the classroom.

I waved my hand behind me without turning my head back.

"I don't have much money right now. Because I'd already given the money I had away."

Aileen looked at my back with hatred.

Angrily, she said, "Okay, you have the guts..."

When I came to class, everyone was seated and waiting for the teacher.

My deskmate, Cynthia, blinked her big eyes and looked at me with a smile on her face.

I was a little confused and said, "Cynthia, why are you looking at me like that?

"Are you in love with me?"

Cynthia said, "Patrick, good for you.

"In the morning, I saw Aileen chasing after you.

"And you ignored her.

"You're really getting manly."

I said, "What do you mean by getting manly? I'm a man, OK?"

Cynthia said, "Could it be that you found out the relationship between Aileen and Clay?"

I didn't get it.

I asked, "Who is Clay? Never even heard of him."

Cynthia said, "Clay Mcgee is a handsome boy. And Aileen really liked him."

I thought to myself, 'He must probably be the boy Aileen sent breakfast to.'

Clay was indeed handsome and rich enough to make a girl's heart flutter.

But what did that have to do with me?

Whoever Aileen liked to be with had nothing to do with me.

I no longer cared about her.

But any time I had the slightest feeling for her, I was sorry for my dad and mom.

Cynthia wonderingly looked up at me.

"You're not interested in Aileen's affairs at all?"

I said, "I'm a student. I should focus on my studies."

Cynthia saw my solemn demeanor and made sure I wasn't joking.

She gave me a thumbs up.

"OK, good for you.

"I'm impressed!"

It was math for the first class.

I could learn a lot more from what my teacher taught.

I could put forward several important questions.

My teacher and classmates were all impressed with me after only one or two classes.

And, for a while after that...

My grades had improved greatly.

There were many questions that the students did not understand and could not even be answered by the teacher.

However, when they asked me, I was able to answer all these questions.

And, there had been a few comprehensive tests in between, and I'd ranked top.

Although, the number one in the class was still Aileen.

But my rapid progress was enough to make Aileen scared.

In a little while, it would be time to decide who could be referred to the best university.

In our class, Aileen was the ideal candidate .

However, she seemed to be distracted in class every day now.

And, in terms of grades, she fell behind a little.

Another exam was coming up.

This time, Aileen still ranked in first place.

However, the difference between her and the second and third places was negligible.

In second place, it was me.

In third place, it was Cynthia.

However, I was also very curious.

Every day, I worked very hard.

And I was smart enough. So I got second place, and I deserved it.

But what was the deal with Cynthia?

She slept every day as soon as she got to class.

She went out and played after class.

She skipped most of the evening classes to hang out with her rich friends.

Even though she didn't put much effort into studying, she got a score that was on par with mine.

I felt so shocked.

On this day, there was still a class going on.

Cynthia just "woke up".

"Hey, Patrick, I'm so bored. Let's talk about gossip, OK?"

But what I was thinking about was I must take first place in the next exam no matter what.

I was not looking forward to accompanying Cynthia talking.

I said, "I'm not in. I have to study."

Cynthia said, "Don't you even want to know why Aileen is dressed in such rags?"

Sure enough, Cynthia's words piqued my curiosity.

Yes, Aileen had gotten a lot of money from me.

Lilia, too, earned a rich paycheck at my house.

And, Aileen had great personal vanity.

By all rights, she should be dressing herself gorgeously.

Why did she dress so shabby every day?

Despite her good looks, she wasn't dressed any differently than a country pumpkin.

I asked, "It seems interesting."

However, Cynthia slouched and slumped back down on the table.

"Ah, I'm tired. I should have a rest."

She was tantalizing me.

I "shook" Cynthia up.

"Tell me or I'll keep you awake all day."

Threatening Cynthia definitely worked.

Cynthia then told me everything she knew.

It was that Aileen was completely trapped.

She put herself at the mercy of Clay.

For so long, every penny she scammed from me, all went to Clay.

She had received lots of gifts and luxury bags.

She sold them all at a discount.

Then, she gave the money to Clay.

I laughed bitterly.

In my previous life, Aileen made a fool of me.

She used my money to please another boy.