Poker night

Celeste looked at the state of the kitchen. The scene could, to a normal family seem completely innocent and friendly… but she and her father knew better.

"Oy, Takeshi, is this your girl?"

Celeste turned to one of the other 4 men in the room.

"Yeah, everyone this is Taeko."

Celeste scowled at him. He knew she hated that name. She was Celeste now, had been Celeste for almost 4 years, even with the obstacles her parents had set up for her.

"Father why is there a poker table in our kitchen?"

"We're just going to play some cards honey, now why don't you go and do your homework?"

He looked at her pleadingly, begging for this to not be the start of yet another episode.

"I finished it all already… and I need food."

Celeste smiled and walked past her father, getting some of the leftovers from dinner, putting it in the microwave.

"Where is mother?"

"Uhh… out… with Sato Chan… shopping."

Celeste blinked. Her mother was out yes… but Sato san who was her mother's childhood friend was away on a cruise, something her mother had gushed about with her for a week before she left, and the mall had closed several hours ago.

Celeste sighed. "She's talking with Nakamura san then?"

Her father stiffened, giving Celeste all the confirmation she needed.

Nakamura was the shrink her parents had made her go to for the last couple of years because of the, as her parent's called it, gothic problem.

"We going to play Takeshi or are you going to talk with your daughter all night?"

Celeste sat down with her food, eating away and ignoring her father who looked at her nervously before sitting down with the other 4. Celeste looked at them all, recognizing them all as her father's coworkers at the pencil push company he worked for.

"All right guys, poker night has officially started, let's start with the entrance fee, 8000 yen on the table, Watanabe, you start dealing."

…

Celeste looked at the 5 men around the table as they started playing. Her gambling skills were one of the things her parents seemed to dislike most about her… or rather Celeste.

They seemed mad that she wanted to be anything other than a boring plain faced girl with just as plain a name. They had frowned at her when she got her lenses and hair clips, asking when she'd be finished with 'this phase in her life' when she finally got enough money to buy herself proper lolita clothes… but the Shrink Nakamura hadn't entered the picture before her mother found her at a poker tournament at the local strip mall just as she cleared out her opponent in the finale.

She had been 10 at the time. Her mother had dragged her home, yelled at her, found a pack of her playing cards, confiscating them and telling her she was grounded and banned from playing Poker ever again. So naturally Celeste did her best to not let her parents know whenever she actually went out and played.

It was actually a blessing, it was because of her mother that she had to go to the underground and play with the gamblers there… Higher stakes, higher level, and a bigger rush.

Celeste raised her eyes from her food back to the poker table as all the men stared at each other. Some had better poker faces than the others.

Inoue looked at his cards. No one but Celeste noticed a small twitch in the corner of his eye.

"Raise" he said, throwing a couple chips into the pile already on the table.

Hayashi was next. "I check" he said; a small quiver in his voice.

'Idiot, why not just fold right now?' Celeste thought to herself, as Watanabe raised the bet again.

Kimura who was the last person before her dad's turn looked at his cards, which Celeste saw perfectly from where she sat. He had a full house, but in low costs, three 3's and two 4's.

'Now please don't…'

"I raise with 16000 yen."

Celeste closed her eyes and suppressed a grunt. 'If you had waited a few rounds and been calm you'd gotten more out of the round you idiot' she thought to herself, waiting for the crowd to announce a fold.

"I call."

Celeste looked at her father who had announced the call, the man pushing his glasses up on his nose.

That's it she decided, she had to be adopted, no one she was related to could do something that stupid. Everyone called, most folding.

In the end Kimura won, and her dad lost, with a meek flush as his cards. The evening went on as Celeste finished her food, the group on the table continuing the game, her father doing all the wrong moves at all the wrong times.

After a few rounds he had lost nearly all he had, as he started the turn as a dealer.

Celeste, who had moved to sit at a nearby table faking reading a book, saw the cards her father got on his hand, raising her eyebrows as he started sorting cards to throw away, among them an ace and a queen.

She rose from her seat, slamming the book shut. "That's it, I can't watch this anymore."

Everyone turned as Celeste rose from her seat, walking up to where her father sat.

"Taeko what is wrONG HEY WHAT ARE YOU…"

Celeste had unceremoniously dragged the chair her father sat on backwards and turned it around, forcing her father out of the chair. She took his place at the table, picking up the cards he had been dealt.

"Father, I care for you, but you are an embarrassment, please stop making a fool out of yourself and let me fix this mess you got yourself into."

Celeste looked at her hand, taking a closer look before turning to her father. "Or do you want to explain to mother that you lost over eighty thousand yen over pure stupidity."

"Taeko, listen, this isn't about the money, it's about the camaraderie and fun time together with… wait, 80 grand? I haven't lost…"

"Actually you have Yasuhiro san… hey we don't mind, we can play with your daughter, can't we lads, show her how the grownups play."

Celeste ignored the insult and stifled laughs, turning to her father.

"Also, please sit down somewhere you can't see my cards, your poker face is horrible and you will be destroying all of my efforts."

Celeste's father sighed; giving up at the face his daughter was giving him. He walked away to sit at the nearby kitchen counter, staring holes in Celeste's head, trying his best to look firm.

"All right" Celeste said smiling at the men; "let's start the first round of betting."

The round went, everyone throwing in their chips, Celeste reveling in the strange feeling she usually didn't get when playing poker. Her father had lost a lot, so she didn't have a lot of chips to throw in, meaning that she had to be careful. On the upside though, the people she was playing against was terrible poker players.

The betting round went around, and the players ditched some cards in favor for new, Celeste doing the dealers job without lifting an eyebrow, throwing away some cards herself, getting some new. Looking at her new hand, her face didn't move an inch as she found herself having the winning hand, a royal straight flush in hearts.

She looked up at the others. Watanabe's finger was twitching, Inoue was licking his lips, Hayashi juggling a chip in between his fingers and Kimura was bouncing his leg something fierce.

All in all Hayashi was feeling confident, Kimura and Watanabe's hands were rubbish and Inoue was probably in the middle ground and probably going to try and bluff the opposition.

Celeste reached out and without as much as a smile threw a chip onto the table.

A few hours and several games later Celeste had won back the money her father had lost, as well as most of her father's co workers.

"Well good sirs I think that's enough for today, thank you for time… and your money."

Celeste smiled her gentle smile as she counted her money, her father rising up.

"All right Taeko, you had your fun now why don't you do the responsible thing to do, hmm?"

Celeste nodded gently, putting a large pile of money to her father. "This is what you almost lost."

"And the rest… that pile that is probably about twice that amount?"

"That's mine" Celeste said with a smile. "After all, I won it."

"Taeko, don't be selfish."

"Your friends were the ones playing with their money… I was better… I'm not giving them back something I won."

Celeste rose, taking the large pile of money with her.

"Good night gentlemen, my compliments to your wives."

And with that Celeste walked out of the kitchen leaving her father and his stunned co workers behind

It was after that day decided that Poker night never again was to be held at the Yasuhiro household; no one could afford the consequences.

End