Card Game

Someone always had to keep a watch of Ava while her granddaughter, Aneko, was out at work. Today, it was Brooke’s turn. The others warned the girl to take caution. Ava wasn’t a quiet old person. Oh no! This lady was a firecracker! Ava had the energy of a twenty year old woman! Most of the people who watched over her were the ones who were worn out before her granddaughter got home. Brooke grinned as she knocked on the bamboo door. She was confident of herself. “I don’t care what the others say!” she thought. “I can’t take an old lady! How bad can she be?” (Ha! Famous last words!)

The Kentucky girl knocked on the door again. “It’s unlocked, dear!” Ava called from inside. Brooke grinned to herself as if she had won the jackpot. Then, she slowly opened the door and went inside. Ava was in the kitchen with her gin. Brooke came in with the same confidence. “Hey there, miss Ava!” she called out. The old lady looked up at the new care taker. The woman looked pretty young for her age. She looked about seventeen or eighteen but was really close to two hundred. (Immortal is a beautiful thing.)

Ava snorted to herself loudly. “They send me a child this time?” she asked aloud. “Ha! Did I finally wear out all of the adults so much they that had to send children to baby-sit me like a little two year old brat?” Brooke kept her ground. “The others were busy with work and I said I’d watch you today!” she replied. “Is that so?” Ava challenged. The Kentucky girl nodded at her boldly. “I’ve a got a card game you!” she called. Then, Brooke pulled out a fresh new deck of unopened cards. “Care to play poker with me?” the girl asked. Ava grinned at the vic-- er… girl wickedly. “Sure!” the older woman called. “I’ll take you on!” Brooke would soon regret issuing the challenge.

“Any last words?” Ava asked as Brooke opened the cards and dumped them out. The Kentucky girl ignored her wisely. She began to shuffle the cards the slow way. Ava quickly became impatient. “No, no, no!” she snapped. “That’s not the way to deal cards! Here give them to me! I’ll deal ‘em!” Brooke sighed annoyed and did so. Ava shuffled them really fast. The Kentucky girl watched in amazement. “I might have a competition on my hands after all!” she thought in shock. Ava smirked to herself wickedly. “Believe it, girl!” she thought. “I’ll whip the pants right off of you!” Then, she dealt out the cards. Brooke took her hand and looked at in hope. A smile formed in her brain. “I have a chance!” she thought. “We’ll see about that!” Ava thought after she heard her opponent’s thoughts. Then, the game began.

First round seemed simple at first. Brooke had the game so easy. She kept herself focused at first. But after two or three wins, the Kentucky girl became cocky. Brooke grinned wickedly at Ava on the beginning of the fourth round. The old lady looked at her harmlessly. “What is it?” she asked sweetly. Brooke grinned at her even more. Her ego and pride had taken over where her mind was. “I’m going to beat you again on this game!” she announced boldly. Ava kept her serious face. “I wouldn’t get so hopeful yet!” she called. “You’re not out of the woods yet!” Brooke just smirked at her. “You wish!” she replied loudly. Then, the game began. Soon, Brooke found herself in a hole! Ava had strangely gained an advantage over her. The old woman was winning every single game. The Kentucky girl was really in a panic. “How is she doing this to me?” she thought in worry. Ava grinned at her wickedly. You see, the woman could hear thoughts. Why didn’t she use it before? The answer is pretty simple! Ava wanted to build a false sense of security with her victim first. Then, when Brooke got too cocky, the immortal old lady would go in for the kill. Ava knew about her care-takers that well. Her methods were as old as time. She would try to put them in a false sense of security. Then, BOOM! They wouldn’t know what hit them.

Brooke found herself trapped in an ugly position. She was losing fast. Ava had miraculously gained the upper hand in the games now. The old lady was winning hands down. Ava grinned at her wickedly before they began yet again. “You give up yet?” she asked. “Or are you thirsty for more?” Brooke looked worried. She was in a tight cram now. The Kentucky girl could only lose again or surrender. If she surrendered, she would be shown weak and prove them right. If she lost again, she would still be proving the others right. Both options looked pretty grim. Brooke tried to think about what to do next. Nothing was coming at first. Then, something went off. “I know!” she thought. “I’ll keep playing until Aneko gets home! That’s when I’ll make my escape!” Ava pretended not to hear the girl’s last thought. “Well,” she called. “Or you going to play again or do you fold?” Brooke looked tough again. “I’ll play you for another round!” she called foolishly. Ava grinned at her wickedly. “You’re going to lose!” she called to her victim. Brooke kept smiling at her. “I know,” she said. “But, I still believe I have chance!” The old lady tried not to laugh at her. “We’ll see about that!” she called. Then the game began again.

Like the others, Brooke was losing badly. This plan was getting worse by the second. The Kentucky girl was really running out of options now. “Just keep playing!” she thought. “You can still hold out until that door opens! Just keep playing!” Ava kept smiling the whole time. This was pure entertainment to its fullest. Her thoughts were so wrong! “To make paranoid or not make paranoid? That is the question!” the old woman thought to herself. It was so tempting to add gasoline to the fire. She had wound the girl up enough, why not take it a step further? But then, Ava smiled to herself. “Nah!” she thought in a dirty way. “That would be over kill! Besides, I’m having too much fun as it is with messing with her!” The game carried on.

Then right in the middle, the door opened wide. Brooke looked up quickly. Aneko was walking into the living room with a grocery bag in her arms. The Kentucky was confused at first. She looked at the old lady who smiling at her innocently. The girl became suspicious. “Are you doing this?” she asked out loud. “Doing what?” Ava asked sweetly. “I’m not stupid!” Brooke yelled out in a rush. “You’re making me think that Aneko’s home in order to make me quit!” Ava just shrugged. “Am I?” she asked. Brooke looked at her confused. “Yeah!” she called. “I mean, no! I mean, I don’t know!” Ava just kept smiling. This was entertaining and she wasn’t even pulling the strings now!

“I’m home, grandma!” Aneko called as she made into the living room. Both Ava and Brooke looked up quickly. The immortal princess was looking back at them. She was surprised to see that Noiz and the crew sent a child to watch her grandmother. “Oh, hello Brooke!” she called to the Kentucky girl. “Were the others to busy to get away to keep over grandma?” Brooke was too wound up to speak. She just threw down the cards and ran straight out the room. Aneko looked on confused.

“What was that all about?” she asked once the girl was gone. Ava shrugged innocently. “Dunno!” she replied harmlessly. Aneko quickly became suspicious. “Okay grandma!” she called out. “What did you do now?” The old lady shrugged at her harmlessly. “It was just a simple game of poker,” she lied. “The kid just couldn’t take the heat.” Her granddaughter still didn’t buy it too well. “Why do you always do something like that?” she asked out loud. Her grandmother still kept her innocent look. “It’s just how I am, dear,” she replied. “It’s not my fault they can’t keep up with me!” Then, Ava went back to her room. Aneko watched behind her speechless and confused. She never could get her grandmother.

I Fold