The lucky shop - A short story - Fiction

            

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It was a sad day when George closed the doors to the shop that afternoon. He had spent forty years opening and closing that shop, but with the new businesses popping up around every corner, his little shop did not really stand a chance. His two boys grew up in the shop. In the afternoons after school they used to work for him, and he taught them all they should know about the business. 

Today Peter was a very successful business owner in the city, and John was the CEO of a chain of well known companies. Peter had been nagging him for years to close the shop, but he refused. After Sally died, this shop kept him alive. He knew everyone in the area, and he had real friends here. 

George was used to a simple life, and they never had a shortage of anything,but when he opened the shop forty years ago, things improved drastically for them. They were never rich, and they were thankful for the simple life they lived.  The most important thing was that they were happy. 

Even today he had his regular customers. Some of them had been supporting him for years. It was going to be weird not to open the shop in the mornings anymore, but the shop was suddenly not so important.

Last week when he installed the lottery machine, he knew that it would bring in some extra money, but he has never been one for gambling, and thought it was a waste of hard earned money. 

When he tested out the machine, he played the six numbers from Sally's birthday, but he had no clue that he would win anything. 

He literally forgot about the ticket, and only checked it yesterday. He thought the machine was broken when an alarm went off but he was even more surprised when he printed out the numbers for the previous draw and compared it to his numbers. They were exactly the same. 

He phoned the number on the back of the ticket, and they confirmed that he was a winner.  He needed to come down to their offices. He closed the shop early and took a taxi into the city. He was too nervous to drive in the city. He handed them the winning ticket and they asked him to verify his identity. Once that was done, he had to give them his bank account number. They told him that the money would be transferred into his account the next day. He didn't know what to expect, because he didn't ask. All this new technology was driving him crazy and he did not understand a thing.  

This morning when he checked his balance on his phone, he could not believe his eyes. There was a fourteen and six zeros.  He had never seen so much money in his whole life, and phoned the number again to make sure that the amount was correct and they did not make a mistake. They confirmed the amount was correct, and wished him luck. 

He always knew that Sally was his good luck charm, and even now, she was looking after him from the grave. He had no clue what to do with all the money but he knew that it was a sign.... a good sign.

He didn't concentrate much at the shop today, and all he could think off was the astronomical amount in his bank account and he was daydreaming more than anything else. They could have robbed him silly and he would honestly not have cared. 

By the end of the day he had made up his mind to close the shop. He had mixed feelings when he closed the door, and when he turned the key for the last time, he knew that he would never come back here again. 

He whistled a happy tune when he walked to the apartment. He would now be able to spend more time with his grandchildren, and perhaps even move closer to see them more often. He was even thinking of taking up a new hobby.  Perhaps he could even buy a little cottage down at the beach and take up fishing...but what he was looking forward to most was the fact that he could sleep in for the first time in forty years, and not feel guilty at all. 

 

 

                           

                          

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