Chapter 211
โYou lost? Let me help you.โ Yannis sat down on the sofa next to Zinnia.
Zinnia frowned and asked in doubt, โCan you?โ
โYannis can do everything. Go Fish is a piece of cake for him. He won a whole estate once when he played it with someone,โ Jackson said with a laugh.
โHeโs that good?โ Zinnia asked in surprise.
โWell, Iโm not bad,โ Yannis nodded modestly.
โYannis, if you join, weโll keep losing,โ Maisie slowed down as she drew a card.
โYannis, sheโs right. If you come in, we probably wonโt win at all,โ Isaac smiled, too.
โThen you shouldnโt join. Your skills are too scary. We want to play by ourselves.โ Zinnia didnโt want Yannis to join, either. He was too smart. If he played, everyone else would lose their fun.
โIโm just guiding, not playing,โ Yannis said.
โIsaac, you can ask Jackson to guide you. Heโs right behind you.โ Yannis smiled and slowly turned to Maisie. โAs for youโโ
โWho should guide me then?โ Maisie scratched her head. She thought she was no match for Jackson or Yannis.
โGrandma.โ A nice voice came from behind them. Everyone turned and saw Charlie.
Charlie was wearing a camel-colored trench coat, a black turtleneck, and black cropped pants. His face was delicate, and his legs were long. As he walked, a soft breeze seemed to pass by everyoneโs hearts.
โCharlieโs here. Now we can match up, and itโs fair,โ Yannis said with a small laugh.
โCharlie, come help me.โ Maisieโs eyes lit up when she saw Charlie.
โWhatโs up?โ Charlie asked with a charming smile on his face.
โZinniaโs new at this and not very good at Go Fish. Yannis said heโd help her win back, but Isaac and Maisie said they werenโt a match for him, so they were looking for help.โ
โYour timingโs perfect. There are three of them. Each of you can help one,โ Yvette explained with a smile.
Dinner was set for 6 p.m., and it was a little past 5 p.m. now. They could play a bit more and then eat dinner.
โI canโt win against Jackson and Yannis.โ Charlie was not that good at this.
โItโs okay. Weโre just playing. If you lose, you just get a sticky note on your face. Charlie, if you donโt help me, Iโll be two against one.โ Maisie casually waved her hand.
โOkay, Iโll try.โ Charlie hadnโt been able to say no. He sat down on the sofa next to Maisie.
โNow youโre not worried, right? Itโs two against two. Nice and fair.โ Yannis ruffled Zinniaโs hair.
โIf I lose, the note goes on your face,โ Zinnia turned back toward him.
โDeal. Stick it on me. Draw a card,โ Yannis smiled.
Zinnia drew a card. It was a 6.
Yannis looked at her hand: 4, 5, 8, 9, 10โall small cards; the highest was a 10. Her cards were a mess.
โZinnia, it looks like youโre a bit unlucky,โ Yannis could barely hide his smile.
Zinnia sighed. โMaisie said Iโm the unluckiest beginner theyโve ever met.โ
As they spoke, it was Zinniaโs turn to draw again. This time she got an 8.
After a round, Zinnia only had two cards with the same number. Now it was her turn to draw again.
โZinnia, ask Maisie if she has a 5,โ Isaac said.
โSeriously?โ Zinnia looked at her cards. She thought sheโd have a better chance if she asked for an 8. She wasnโt sure whether to listen to Yannis.
โTrust me. Iโm never wrong,โ Yannis said.
And sure enough, Zinnia got all the 5s and immediately ended her bad luck. She hadnโt gotten this lucky before. It was no wonder Maisie and Isaac made fun of her.
โYour luckโs better than mine,โ Zinnia said.
โItโs because youโre sitting next to me. Thatโs why my luck is so good.โ Yannis turned slightly and placed Zinniaโs set face-up beside her.
Zinnia didnโt say a word, but a small smile crossed her face. Everyone liked compliments, especially Zinnia, who was always unlucky. Yannisโs words made her happy.
In a new round, Zinnia was the dealer, so she went first.
Zinnia picked up her five cards, hoping at least two of them were the same. But this time all her cards were different.
She asked Isaac, โDo you have a 2?โ
With Yannis guiding her, Zinnia turned things around even with a weak hand. Slowly, sticky notes started piling up on Isaac and Maisieโs faces.
โIsaac, you lost. Stick it on,โ Maisie said. The dealer, Isaac, had gotten the worst of it this time.
โPut it on Isaac,โ Yannis handed Zinnia a sticky note and nodded toward him.
Isaac leaned forward, and Zinnia pressed it on his cheek. She smiled when she saw his ridiculous face.
โOne more game, then we eat,โ Yvette called.
โOkay,โ everyone answered.
โYannis, howโd you do it? Did you somehow know everyoneโs cards?โ Isaac sighed.
Then he turned back toward Jackson. โJackson, how come you kept losing to Yannis?โ
Isaac hadnโt expected Jackson, who seemed to know everything, to be awful at Go Fish. His guidance made him lose faster.
โWhat can I say? I tried my best. Remember this: never challenge Yannis in a card game.โ Jackson was not much of a card player.
The rest listened to Isaacโs dramatic complaints and tried not to laugh.
โYouโre amazing.โ Zinnia looked at Yannis with pure admiration. Sometimes, when she drew a card, she didnโt even know what to do with it because all the numbers were a mess.
โItโs all luck. Zinnia, you bring me that luck.โ Yannisโs deep, charming eyes glimmered.
โIโll shuffle,โ he said, leaning forward to gather the messy cards on the coffee table. His hands were well-defined, and the cards in his grip.
โHere, draw again.โ Yannis placed the stack back in the center of the table.
Zinnia was the winner, so she drew first. She turned over her five cards and found three were the same number.
Surprised, Zinnia looked up at Yannis. She hadnโt gotten a hand this good before.
Yannisโs gaze softened a little when he saw her happiness.
A new round started, and Zinnia quickly collected all four of the same number.
This time she was the dealer. Maybe it was because she knew Yannis could turn things around no matter how messy the cards were, Zinnia no longer avoided being dealer.
Before long, Zinnia won again. She widened her eyes in disbelief at her own luck.
Suddenly, she wanted to play a few more rounds.