Post by Deleted on May 8, 2011 15:56:59 GMT
(This thread may not be subject to story lines. Open to all.)
December – 1943
The Gaming Hall was filled with laughter and the indistinct rumble of easy chatter, most of the people where dressed in their very best of clothes and the women wore expensive jewelery that glistened and shone in the light. A small jazz band had been set up in one of the corners with an area cleared for a dance floor, they where playing cover of Bing Crosby’s rendition of white Christmas. People sat scattered around at various tables that offered different games, most of them where loosing horribly but there where those who sat there with large piles of money in front of them and even larger smiles on their faces. The majority of the men who occupied the seats were dressed in military uniforms, from the dark blue of the Navy to the olive green of the Army. All men on leave and keen to make some extra money from the tables. Most of them would leave with much less then they had come with.
Making her way through the maze of tables a waitress carried a tray of drinks. She swerved her hips to dodge chairs and people while balancing the tray with a certain amount of grace and ease that could only be gained through years of practice. She kept her eyes up the whole time, not daring to look at the hands of cards that people had or to see who was winning. She knew from experience that gamblers who lost would find any excuse they could for their bad luck - and if they could say that a waitress who had looked over the losers shoulder had helped the winner - they would do so without a second of hesitation. She weaved her way through the hall till she came to the table she was after. With a smile she politely waited for the round to finish and spoke up while the dealer was shuffling.
“I have your drinks Gentlemen, could you be so kind as to say what you ordered?”
Each of the gamblers smiled back at her and said what they had ordered, as they spoke up she went around the table and placed the drink in front of each man and collected their empty glasses. She put a glass of water down for the dealer and left them with the encouraging words of “Good luck.” As she was walking away one of the more drunk gamblers reached out and gave her a pat on the ass with enough force to actually push her. A gasp of shock and surprise escaped her as she lost her balance and fell onto another man at the neighboring table, the glasses hit the carpeted floor and rolled away in all directions and people all around her got to their feet.
The laughter and music in the hall suddenly stopped as everyone turned to watch what was happening. Security guards where rushing through the tables towards the waitress. Sam Coller held her tight in his arms while he waited for her regain her composure.
“Are you ok?” He asked her with a gentle voice. She regained herself and he let her go as she got to her feet.
“I’m so sorry sir, please forgive me. I’m fine thanks and thank you for catching me.” She said while trying to hide a touch of embarrassment from her voice. Behind her the man who had pushed her was being restrained by the security guards, he was grumbling about not meaning to push her that hard. One of the guards came up to her. “Jess, you ok?”
“Fine thanks Dan. Can you get him out of here? He’s had too much to drink.”
Dan nodded and signaled the guards to drag escort the man outside. They did so immediately and the drunken man gave little resistance, obviously knowing that his welcome in the Gaming Hall had been exhausted. Dan followed behind they just in case and the band started playing again, within a few seconds the laughter was back in the air and everything was continuing on as if nothing had happened.
Jess knelt down and began collecting the fallen glasses and placing them back on the tray. Sam got off his chair and helped her.
“Thank you sir. Again I am so sorry for that, I didn’t mean to fall on you. I’ll bring you a drink on the house.”
“It’s all good love.” Sam said, “It wasn’t your fault. That Galah just can’t handle his grog. I’m Sam anyway.”
“I’m Jessica.”
“Nice to meet you, and if you’re real about that free drink. I’ll have a rum on the rocks.”
“Of course sir. I will be back in a moment.”
She walked off quickly, hiding her smile this time. She thought he looked quite good despite not being as dressed up as everyone else; he looked quite comfortable and easy going, as if he could go anywhere and make friends.
Sam watched Jessica walk off. He grinned as he took his seat back and picked up his hand of cards.
“Nice going mate.” Greg said with a grin. “I think she likes you.”
Sam looked over at his friend, his grin unwavering as he spoke. “What’s not to like eh?”
“Must be your accent Aussie.” One of the other gamblers at the table said. “Most women are into weird ones like yours.”
“I don’t have an accent mate. The rest of you do though.” Sam laughed and looked at his two cards, they where playing his favorite version of poker, Texas Hold’em.
“Yeah yeah yeah, lets just keep the game going.” Another man said while he tapped his finger on the table. Sam read his sign instantly. He glanced around as the others at the table checked their hands, and as they did so, Sam read each one of them like an open book. One man was chewing his bottom lip as he put a chip into the pot and Sam knew he was bluffing. The one tapping his finger was sitting on something big but was too impatient while waiting for the others to place their bets. Greg had folded on the last round and was sipping his drink casually. The man on the other side of Coller was rubbing two chips together; his sign that he was unsure of how to proceed and the last player was blinking a lot. Something Sam learned was a sign that he was about to fold. The dealer called for the round to finish before showing the last card. Already on the table were a King of Hearts, an Ace of Spades, an Ace of Hearts, and the Ace of Clubs. In Sam’s had he was holding a queen of Clubs and a King of Diamonds. A three of a kind with Aces and a pair of Kings was a very hard hand to beat. Unless someone had the last Ace, Sam was sure he was going to win the round. He wasn’t worried about the other players but he was keeping an eye on the man tapping his finger.
Finally the last bets where made and the last card was flipped. Sam almost broke out laughing at his luck. The King of Clubs stared up at him, making his hand a four of a kind. Everyone was going to have a three of Aces, but Sam had a Full House of Kings and Aces now, one of the highest hands he had ever held. He kept his face as blank as possible as the other’s placed their bets. The pot was over $1000 now; a very high stakes game. Sam read the other players quickly; everyone was showing their signs of having nothing, all except for the bloke tapping his finger on the table. The others folded with sighs of disappointment and the game became a dual between Sam and the finger tapper. Sam placed his bet and the man called him on it, forcing Sam to show his hand. Once his cards where down Sam grinned back at the finger tapper who pulled only one of his cards from his hand and placed it on the table. Sam stared at the Ace of Diamonds as if it was the most disgusting thing he had ever seen. Four a kind of anything beat his Full house, and he sighed as the finger tapper laughed and reached for the money in the centre. Unfortunately for him, Jessica had been on her way back to the table with Sam’s drink and as she had passed him she had seen the other card out the corner of her eye. She cleared her throat and quickly snatched it from his hand, throwing it onto the table where all could see a second Ace of Spades. Five Aces is a dead mans hand.
The cheater turned to make a run for it, knocking Jess out of his way as he made a dash for the door. The guards where quicker and tackled him before he could escape. The dealer ran up to them and said something and the guards dragged the cheater through a pair of doors marked ‘Staff Only.’
Sam quickly went around to the table and helped Jess to her feet.
“It seems tonight is my night for being on the floor.” She said as she straightened out her uniform.
“Well it must be my night for helping you back up then.” Sam said with a smile.
“Thank you again Sam. It seems I’m going to have to go and get you another drink.” Jess said as she looked at the soggy patch of carpet on the floor.
“I’m not fussed love, as long as you’re alright?”
“I am, thanks again.” She picked up the glass and tray.
“No worries love.”
“Back in a moment.”
As she turned Sam called after her. “I’ll be in the smokers court.” She nodded and waved as she made her way back to the bar. The dealer returned to the table and collected the money from the centre, rolling it into a wad and slipping a rubber band over it. He handed it to Sam. “Your winnings sir.” Sam smiled and looked around at the other men who had lost. He removed a few notes and placed them on the table. “Buy yourselves a drink boys.” He said as he walked off grinning.
Greg followed Sam out into the smoker’s court. The casino was such a high class place that they didn’t allow smoking inside. Sam pulled a crumpled packet from his pocket and taped one of the white sticks from it. He pulled out his lighter and lit the end, inhaling the deeply he closed his eyes. He offered one to Greg who shook his head.
“You know I don’t smoke.”
“It never hurts to offer. You might change your mind one day.” Sam grinned as he put the packet away. He looked around at the upper class citizens that where mingling around the smokers court.
“So what did you learn in that game?”
Greg shook his head and leant against the wall.
“About as much as I did in the last game. I can’t keep the signs together, I kept on forgetting what meant want… I thought the guy tapping his finger was bluffing. I can keep track of all the dials, needles and gauges in a cockpit during a raid. But for some reason I can’t read people.”
Sam patted Greg on the shoulder. They had been friends for years now, and had flown together on countless missions. “Unlike planes that let you know something wrong with a flashing red light, people tend to want to hide their flaws and faults. You’ll get there one day.”
Greg shook off Sam’s hand and grinned. “Yeah yeah yeah. One day. I’m going for a piss.”
Sam watched his friend leave and took another drag on his cigarette, he exhaled and watched the smoke drift lazily up into the sky.
December – 1943
The Gaming Hall was filled with laughter and the indistinct rumble of easy chatter, most of the people where dressed in their very best of clothes and the women wore expensive jewelery that glistened and shone in the light. A small jazz band had been set up in one of the corners with an area cleared for a dance floor, they where playing cover of Bing Crosby’s rendition of white Christmas. People sat scattered around at various tables that offered different games, most of them where loosing horribly but there where those who sat there with large piles of money in front of them and even larger smiles on their faces. The majority of the men who occupied the seats were dressed in military uniforms, from the dark blue of the Navy to the olive green of the Army. All men on leave and keen to make some extra money from the tables. Most of them would leave with much less then they had come with.
Making her way through the maze of tables a waitress carried a tray of drinks. She swerved her hips to dodge chairs and people while balancing the tray with a certain amount of grace and ease that could only be gained through years of practice. She kept her eyes up the whole time, not daring to look at the hands of cards that people had or to see who was winning. She knew from experience that gamblers who lost would find any excuse they could for their bad luck - and if they could say that a waitress who had looked over the losers shoulder had helped the winner - they would do so without a second of hesitation. She weaved her way through the hall till she came to the table she was after. With a smile she politely waited for the round to finish and spoke up while the dealer was shuffling.
“I have your drinks Gentlemen, could you be so kind as to say what you ordered?”
Each of the gamblers smiled back at her and said what they had ordered, as they spoke up she went around the table and placed the drink in front of each man and collected their empty glasses. She put a glass of water down for the dealer and left them with the encouraging words of “Good luck.” As she was walking away one of the more drunk gamblers reached out and gave her a pat on the ass with enough force to actually push her. A gasp of shock and surprise escaped her as she lost her balance and fell onto another man at the neighboring table, the glasses hit the carpeted floor and rolled away in all directions and people all around her got to their feet.
The laughter and music in the hall suddenly stopped as everyone turned to watch what was happening. Security guards where rushing through the tables towards the waitress. Sam Coller held her tight in his arms while he waited for her regain her composure.
“Are you ok?” He asked her with a gentle voice. She regained herself and he let her go as she got to her feet.
“I’m so sorry sir, please forgive me. I’m fine thanks and thank you for catching me.” She said while trying to hide a touch of embarrassment from her voice. Behind her the man who had pushed her was being restrained by the security guards, he was grumbling about not meaning to push her that hard. One of the guards came up to her. “Jess, you ok?”
“Fine thanks Dan. Can you get him out of here? He’s had too much to drink.”
Dan nodded and signaled the guards to drag escort the man outside. They did so immediately and the drunken man gave little resistance, obviously knowing that his welcome in the Gaming Hall had been exhausted. Dan followed behind they just in case and the band started playing again, within a few seconds the laughter was back in the air and everything was continuing on as if nothing had happened.
Jess knelt down and began collecting the fallen glasses and placing them back on the tray. Sam got off his chair and helped her.
“Thank you sir. Again I am so sorry for that, I didn’t mean to fall on you. I’ll bring you a drink on the house.”
“It’s all good love.” Sam said, “It wasn’t your fault. That Galah just can’t handle his grog. I’m Sam anyway.”
“I’m Jessica.”
“Nice to meet you, and if you’re real about that free drink. I’ll have a rum on the rocks.”
“Of course sir. I will be back in a moment.”
She walked off quickly, hiding her smile this time. She thought he looked quite good despite not being as dressed up as everyone else; he looked quite comfortable and easy going, as if he could go anywhere and make friends.
Sam watched Jessica walk off. He grinned as he took his seat back and picked up his hand of cards.
“Nice going mate.” Greg said with a grin. “I think she likes you.”
Sam looked over at his friend, his grin unwavering as he spoke. “What’s not to like eh?”
“Must be your accent Aussie.” One of the other gamblers at the table said. “Most women are into weird ones like yours.”
“I don’t have an accent mate. The rest of you do though.” Sam laughed and looked at his two cards, they where playing his favorite version of poker, Texas Hold’em.
“Yeah yeah yeah, lets just keep the game going.” Another man said while he tapped his finger on the table. Sam read his sign instantly. He glanced around as the others at the table checked their hands, and as they did so, Sam read each one of them like an open book. One man was chewing his bottom lip as he put a chip into the pot and Sam knew he was bluffing. The one tapping his finger was sitting on something big but was too impatient while waiting for the others to place their bets. Greg had folded on the last round and was sipping his drink casually. The man on the other side of Coller was rubbing two chips together; his sign that he was unsure of how to proceed and the last player was blinking a lot. Something Sam learned was a sign that he was about to fold. The dealer called for the round to finish before showing the last card. Already on the table were a King of Hearts, an Ace of Spades, an Ace of Hearts, and the Ace of Clubs. In Sam’s had he was holding a queen of Clubs and a King of Diamonds. A three of a kind with Aces and a pair of Kings was a very hard hand to beat. Unless someone had the last Ace, Sam was sure he was going to win the round. He wasn’t worried about the other players but he was keeping an eye on the man tapping his finger.
Finally the last bets where made and the last card was flipped. Sam almost broke out laughing at his luck. The King of Clubs stared up at him, making his hand a four of a kind. Everyone was going to have a three of Aces, but Sam had a Full House of Kings and Aces now, one of the highest hands he had ever held. He kept his face as blank as possible as the other’s placed their bets. The pot was over $1000 now; a very high stakes game. Sam read the other players quickly; everyone was showing their signs of having nothing, all except for the bloke tapping his finger on the table. The others folded with sighs of disappointment and the game became a dual between Sam and the finger tapper. Sam placed his bet and the man called him on it, forcing Sam to show his hand. Once his cards where down Sam grinned back at the finger tapper who pulled only one of his cards from his hand and placed it on the table. Sam stared at the Ace of Diamonds as if it was the most disgusting thing he had ever seen. Four a kind of anything beat his Full house, and he sighed as the finger tapper laughed and reached for the money in the centre. Unfortunately for him, Jessica had been on her way back to the table with Sam’s drink and as she had passed him she had seen the other card out the corner of her eye. She cleared her throat and quickly snatched it from his hand, throwing it onto the table where all could see a second Ace of Spades. Five Aces is a dead mans hand.
The cheater turned to make a run for it, knocking Jess out of his way as he made a dash for the door. The guards where quicker and tackled him before he could escape. The dealer ran up to them and said something and the guards dragged the cheater through a pair of doors marked ‘Staff Only.’
Sam quickly went around to the table and helped Jess to her feet.
“It seems tonight is my night for being on the floor.” She said as she straightened out her uniform.
“Well it must be my night for helping you back up then.” Sam said with a smile.
“Thank you again Sam. It seems I’m going to have to go and get you another drink.” Jess said as she looked at the soggy patch of carpet on the floor.
“I’m not fussed love, as long as you’re alright?”
“I am, thanks again.” She picked up the glass and tray.
“No worries love.”
“Back in a moment.”
As she turned Sam called after her. “I’ll be in the smokers court.” She nodded and waved as she made her way back to the bar. The dealer returned to the table and collected the money from the centre, rolling it into a wad and slipping a rubber band over it. He handed it to Sam. “Your winnings sir.” Sam smiled and looked around at the other men who had lost. He removed a few notes and placed them on the table. “Buy yourselves a drink boys.” He said as he walked off grinning.
Greg followed Sam out into the smoker’s court. The casino was such a high class place that they didn’t allow smoking inside. Sam pulled a crumpled packet from his pocket and taped one of the white sticks from it. He pulled out his lighter and lit the end, inhaling the deeply he closed his eyes. He offered one to Greg who shook his head.
“You know I don’t smoke.”
“It never hurts to offer. You might change your mind one day.” Sam grinned as he put the packet away. He looked around at the upper class citizens that where mingling around the smokers court.
“So what did you learn in that game?”
Greg shook his head and leant against the wall.
“About as much as I did in the last game. I can’t keep the signs together, I kept on forgetting what meant want… I thought the guy tapping his finger was bluffing. I can keep track of all the dials, needles and gauges in a cockpit during a raid. But for some reason I can’t read people.”
Sam patted Greg on the shoulder. They had been friends for years now, and had flown together on countless missions. “Unlike planes that let you know something wrong with a flashing red light, people tend to want to hide their flaws and faults. You’ll get there one day.”
Greg shook off Sam’s hand and grinned. “Yeah yeah yeah. One day. I’m going for a piss.”
Sam watched his friend leave and took another drag on his cigarette, he exhaled and watched the smoke drift lazily up into the sky.