Lucky in Love: A Saigon Serenade

Chapter 1: The Tides of Fortune

Evan Nguyen wandered the streets of Saigon, his hands tucked casually into the pockets of his faded jeans. The sun hung low, casting a warm, golden glow on the crowded streets where motorbikes zipped by like schools of fish darting through a river. His tousled black hair and easygoing smile blended effortlessly into the chaos of the city. To anyone watching, he was just another young man in a sea of people. But Evan wasn't like everyone else. He had something—something that defied explanation.

It was luck.

All his life, luck had followed him like an invisible force. When he was orphaned at six years old, somehow, the kindest old woman in the neighborhood had found him wandering the streets and taken him in. He grew up never knowing hardship, even as the world around him brimmed with stories of struggle. Evan never had to worry about money—he always found just enough for what he needed, whether it was a winning lottery ticket he'd casually picked up or someone "accidentally" overpaying him at his occasional part-time jobs.

Now at 24, his life seemed like a dream: he had no job, no plans, no real purpose—just drifting through life, letting fortune carry him. But today, something felt different. There was a strange stirring in his chest, an emptiness that even his charmed life couldn't fill.

He stopped at the edge of a busy street, watching as vendors sold everything from bánh mì to iced coffee to swarms of motorbike riders who barely slowed down to grab their food. Evan had no particular destination, but the pull of something unknown urged him forward.

"Evan! Watch out!" a voice called from behind, snapping him out of his reverie.

He turned just in time to see a street vendor lose control of her cart, which was careening straight toward him, overloaded with goods. Without thinking, Evan sidestepped, and the cart veered to the side, crashing harmlessly into a stack of plastic chairs outside a café. A chorus of sighs and laughter erupted from the bystanders as they watched the spectacle unfold.

The young woman who had called out to him ran over, breathless. "Are you okay? That could've been bad."

Evan blinked, still trying to piece together what had just happened. He smiled, as he always did when something like this occurred. "I guess I got lucky."

The woman didn't smile back. Her brow furrowed, her dark eyes stormy with irritation. "Lucky? That's one way to look at it."

Evan finally took in the woman before him. She was about his age, her black hair tied up in a messy bun, her clothes worn but clean. Her hands were red from pushing the heavy cart, and her face, though beautiful, bore the hard lines of someone who had worked far too much for far too little.

"I'm Mai An," she said curtly, clearly unimpressed by his nonchalance. "You should be more careful. Not everything in this city runs on luck."

Evan's smile faltered, just for a second. He was used to people laughing off his easygoing nature, but there was something about Mai An's intense gaze that unnerved him. He couldn't quite place it, but it was as if she could see right through him.

"Thanks for the warning, Mai An," Evan said, regaining his composure. "But I think I'll be alright."

Mai An narrowed her eyes, clearly not amused. "Must be nice to live like that," she muttered under her breath as she bent down to check on her cart. One of the wheels had cracked, making it impossible for her to continue selling her goods today.

Evan knelt beside her, feeling a pang of guilt. "Here, let me help. It's the least I can do."

She glanced at him, skeptical. "You? Help?"

"Hey, I can be useful," he said, flashing his signature grin, hoping to win her over.

With a sigh, she stepped back and let him take a look at the cart. Evan had no real experience with fixing anything, but he felt confident that luck would see him through. After all, hadn't it always?

He jimmied the wheel, trying to snap it back into place, but it was no use. His fingers slipped, and the wheel came off completely, rolling into the street.

Mai An folded her arms and gave him a look that could have melted iron. "Nice try, but maybe leave the fixing to someone who knows what they're doing."

Evan chuckled, not at all embarrassed. "Okay, okay, fair point. I'm not much of a mechanic."

"Clearly," she said, her tone softening just a bit. She rubbed her temples, her exhaustion starting to show. "Guess I'm done for the day."

Evan could see the weight of her frustration settling on her shoulders. She looked around at the bustling city, where every second seemed to matter for those trying to survive. It wasn't lost on him how different their worlds were.

"Look, why don't you let me buy you something to eat? It's the least I can do for wrecking your day."

Mai An hesitated. She didn't trust him—there was something too easy about him, too carefree. But her stomach growled, betraying her. She hadn't eaten since the early morning, and the prospect of a hot meal was hard to turn down.

"Fine," she said, "but only because I'm starving."

They made their way to a nearby food stall, one of those tucked-away spots only the locals knew. Evan ordered two bowls of phở, the rich scent of beef broth filling the air as they sat down on tiny plastic stools at a wobbly table.

"So, how does someone like you end up pushing a street cart in Saigon?" Evan asked, genuinely curious.

Mai An raised an eyebrow. "Someone like me?"

Evan backtracked quickly. "I just mean, you don't seem like the type who's content with something like this."

"I'm not," she said bluntly. "But my family's in debt, and I have to help out. You do what you have to do, right?"

Her words hit Evan harder than he expected. He'd never known what it was like to struggle, not really. The idea of working hard just to survive was foreign to him, and for the first time in a long time, he felt uncomfortable in his own skin.

Mai An looked at him across the table, her eyes searching his. "What about you? What do you do?"

Evan smiled, though it felt a little hollow this time. "Me? I guess I just...get by."

"Get by?" she repeated, her tone dripping with disbelief. "That's not much of an answer."

"It's the truth," he shrugged. "I've always been lucky, you know? Things just sort of...work out."

Mai An shook her head, incredulous. "Must be nice to live like that."

For a moment, the two of them sat in silence, the sounds of the city swirling around them. Evan stared into his bowl of phở, realizing that for the first time, he wasn't sure if his luck would be enough. Something about Mai An—her strength, her resilience—made him question whether he had been coasting through life for too long.

As they finished their meal, Evan glanced at her, a strange determination flickering inside him. Maybe it was time to stop relying on luck. Maybe there was more to life than chance.

Maybe, just maybe, Mai An was the first person who could make him want to earn something for real.