King of the Cell (DNF)

Chapter 30: Card Games

George POV.

“No, not like that. You want to discard the card with the highest number, surely you have a card higher than a five!” Quackity complained after I’d discarded one of the cards in my hand.
“I don’t have anything higher than a five.” I responded, before noting Dream glancing over my shoulder to see what I had and confirming what I said.

The man sitting across from me grumbled something under his breath in Spanish before motioning for me to pick up a card, which I did. He’d been growing increasingly frustrated with me throughout the past hour as he attempted to teach me a card game he’d apparently invented. I wasn’t too sure if that was true or not, but it was funny to see him slowly losing his sanity.

It had started when I’d been sitting in the library, quickly shuffling a pack of cards so I could play a simple game of solitaire when he approached me. He said, and I quote, ‘you have fast hands there George, and seem like you can focus really well. Those are good skills for a casino host if you are interested in learning.’

I had been curious, and so he offered to teach me, since in prison once a month he told me he ran a gambling night, and it was so popular that even the guards sometimes got into it. He’d taught me how to play blackjack and roulette today, and now we were playing a card game for the last fifteen minutes before I had my second therapy session with Philza.

Most of the group was off doing their assigned job, whether it was an actual prison job or one of the ones Dream organised as part of their black market. The only people at the table alongside myself and Quackity were Dream and Skeppy.

Dream was playing on the same team as I was, helping me to understand the game, and I was versing both Quackity and Skeppy. As we played, Quackity was explaining to me more about the casino nights, and occasionally yelling at me for making a dumb move.

From what I understood of the gambling nights, they had grown in popularity since Quackity started it. People always had a good time even though they often ended up losing money, and even the guards sometimes played alongside the inmates. Quackity has trained a couple of people to be dealers and they got to keep half of all earnings in the evening.

At least that is what he said, but I couldn’t be sure how truthful he was seeing as the way that both Skeppy and Dream smirked at what he said. I sighed lightly as I realised that it was my turn again before glancing at the clock, seeing it was 11:20, and so I decided that it was probably time for me to go.

I stood up and passed my cards to Dream so that he could continue playing. “I probably should get going,” I said in a soft voice. “But thanks for teaching me some games, Quackity.” As I thanked him he gave me a nod.
“We’ll see you at the mess hall for lunch,” Dream said to me as I left.

Just like on Wednesday I went to a set of stairs which would take me up to the fourth floor, and I had to show the two guards standing there the note. It had been buried in my pocket and wrinkled slightly by this point, but they allowed me to go to Philza’s office. I knocked on the door when I reached it, and a moment later it was opened by the blond.

“Good morning George,” he greeted as he looked down at me. I responded with a polite good morning back, something which I doubt he’s been treated too much based on his reaction, and based on the fact that he works in a prison full of some of the biggest assholes I’ve ever met. “Do come in,” he smiled when I’d spoken, and I did as he said.

I took a seat in the same spot I did the other day, and the older blond sat opposite me. “So George, how have you been since I’ve last spoken to you?” He questioned.
“I’ve been good. Yesterday I hung out outside with some of my friends and one of them taught me some card games.” I smiled.

“That sounds like it was nice.” Philza responded. “So, do you remember where we finished off talking the other day?”
I nodded. “I was telling you about what happened before Techno transferred.”
“Can we continue after that?” He asked, and I nodded.

✨A half hour later✨
Philza POV.

“Thank you for coming again,” I smiled at George as we walked down the hallway together, back towards the stairwell which would take him down to the main floor of the prison. I had decided to walk with him until we were downstairs, making conversation about the weather and things we’d read about or watched on TV lately.

The pair of guards that usually waited at the bottom of the stairs to make sure no prisoners went up without permission were gone. But it was around the time they switched over positions with another pair of guards who obviously weren’t there yet. When we were at the top of the stairs George gave me a polite goodbye before hurrying down them.

I was just about to turn away when he reached the bottom of the steps before I heard a loud voice. “Hey f*ggot! First time away from Dream’s protection I see!”
A bulky prisoner with dark skin and a shaved head pushed George against the wall harshly, making the smaller brunette gasp.

The prisoner who had pushed George against the wall was no more than two or three inches taller, but because of the angle the brunette had been pushed the difference seemed much bigger. I was about to run down or call some guards to try and pull the taller prisoner off of the shorter, but another prisoner got there first.

“Get away from him!” A ravenette yelled, as he and a taller blond both ran from down a hallway and full on rugby tackled the taller prison. The ravenette continued to yell at the taller prisoner while the blond approached George and said something quietly to him which seemed to reassure the Brit.

I watched the interaction, quickly recognising the blond as Clay, or Dream, the person that George had been talking about for most of today's session and had befriended. The ravenette who was yelling at the other prisoner was unrecognisable though. I couldn’t help but smile as the blond wrapped a protective arm around George and led him away from the person who had attempted to grab him.

As I turned around to head back to my office I couldn’t help but feel slightly cautious. I had read parts of Dream's file both last night after dinner and this morning before I left for work, and it seemed as though he was not the kind of person to trust. I didn't want to say anything to the brunette yet, but there were some phone calls I needed to make before I have enough evidence to show.
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