Evening, morning, and afternoon to you all. My name is Nathanial Harper, but please, just call me 'Nate' for short. You're probably wondering 'okay, who is this guy?'. Well, I'm nobody really, just your Average Joe.

  Same as anybody else. Now let's see, what can I tell you about myself? I have dark blonde hair, blue eyes, a somewhat plump and stocky physique, and I have a 'baby face' that makes me look younger than I actually am, so I try to grow a beard to make myself look older.

  I’m about thirty years old. I typically wear some sort of graphic novel shirt and shorts. I work as a cashier at a major Hardware store, the hours seem to drag on forever, I am forced to deal with many rude and ungrateful customers that seem to get their jollies by screaming at me and my coworkers.

  As much as I hate the job and dealing with people day in or day out, I have to make ends meet somehow. During my days off, I stay at home, play video games, try to do movie nights with my mother, and enjoy meals cooked by my step-dad. I swear, the man could probably rival celebrity chefs. His pork loin? Melts in your mouth and is seasoned perfectly.

  My mother works as a nurse at a women's correctional facility. From my understanding, she got promoted and is doing more administrative work, with a much better pay raise. I also have three older sisters, my oldest sister has become estranged and lives out of state, she sometimes comes for Thanksgiving and that's about it. My other two sisters occasionally visit, especially my third sister who always brings her daughter with her; one of my nieces.

  My grandmother lives with my mom and step-dad since she can't live alone after her husband, my grandfather passed away. She used to be a nurse too, back in the day. Nowadays, she sits in her room and watches TV, sometimes she leaves to go to church or to visit her sister.

  Now then, moving on... you ever feel like your life is stuck in some kind of rut? You try to carry on, try to grit your teeth and keep going, but life's troubles slowly grind away at you. Wearing you down, bit by bit, until you feel like you reach your breaking point. You then think to yourself: 'I gotta get out of here. There has to be something better than this.'

  Trust me, I know exactly how that feels. I can't tell you the number of times that I have considered quitting my job and moving on. My current position as a cashier leaves me so stressed, that I feel constantly sick with nausea and fits of dry heaving. People yelling and screaming at me also stirs... unpleasant memories. Even my supervisors and Head Cashiers watch me like hawks, hovering around like helicopter moms while micromanaging me.

  It feels like a miracle that I haven't had some sort of nervous breakdown as of yet. Then, one day, I went to a gas station that is close to home to pick up some snacks, my favorite chips, some candy, my favorite bottled soft drink, and two slices of pizza. I glance up at the current numbers of the lottery jackpots, one of them had reached a record breaking three billion dollars. Imagine that, three billion. Unless a feller actively wastes it or it is somehow stolen, I find it hard to imagine how someone would be able to spend that much money in their whole life time.

  Sometimes I feel envious, you know? Of course, that is human nature, isn't it? We always desire what others have. I often wished that I had vast wealth, or some other set of skills that could help me become successful. Unfortunately, that is my curse. To be average. To be nobody, really. Regardless of my own thoughts, I couldn't stop staring at that prize. Three effing billion.

  With that kind of cash, I could be set up for life. It might be a pipe dream, but it still couldn't hurt to play, right? I mean, if I don't buy a ticket, then how would I ever win? I've heard some people say that the lottery is rigged, don't know if that's true or not... but it still is worth a try, yeah? Especially with that kind of cash on the line. I paid for my stuff and slipped an additional twenty bucks for a few tickets.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  That night, I kicked back at home and watched some of my favorite movies to pass the time, enjoying my goodies. After a while, I decided to check the lottery results on my phone, I was expecting nothing but duds, however... I saw that my numbers matched up with the results. I had won. I won the freaking Jackpot! As you can imagine, I had to check, triple check, and quintuple check the numbers to make sure that I wasn't seeing things... but it all checked out.

  I immediately grabbed a pen and scribbled my signature on the back to officially lay claim to it. I was so happy that I ran to my mother and step-dad's place, which is a short walking distance from me. I was screaming and hollering like a madman, banging on their door to let me in since I had rushed out without my keys, one of which gave me access to their home whenever I wanted to visit.

  My parents burst out with weapons drawn, thinking that I was in trouble or being attacked by something, which comically caused me to fall on my butt. Most fortunately, I was completely over the moon and didn't feel the impact. As I tried to explain to them about my sudden good fortune, they were only able to stare at me in confusion. I guess that I was talking so fast that they couldn't properly understand me. So then I thrust the ticket towards them that I kept gripped tightly in my fist and repeated the word 'Jackpot!' over and over again.

  This seemed to have the desired effect as they now understood what I was trying to convey. They extended their congratulations to me, hugging me, and so forth. Suffice it to say, that night... I didn't get much sleep.

  The following morning, with my winning ticket safely nestled in my wallet, I drove towards the Claims Center to cash it in and collect my earnings. Since I only ever drive to and from work, or occasionally the grocery store, I rely on a navigation app on my phone to help guide me to my destination. Upon my arrival, I parked the car, and took a moment to take a breath before getting out.

  This was it, my whole life was about to change. As I approached the Claims Center, I could already picture a few things I wanted to do with my new wealth. I could pay off the student loan debts of my mom and sisters, buy me a nice and shiny new truck since I had little interest in fancy sports cars, and I could also build my very own dream home.

  I entered inside and approached the front desk, informing the receptionist that I had the lucky jackpot winning ticket. I was then immediately referred to the main office where the ticket was verified, once that was done, I was given the customary congratulations and had my picture taken. I was then asked if I wanted the cash to be as a single lump payment, or in an annuity, an annual payment over the course of approximately thirty years.

  Naturally, I had done my research beforehand. If I accepted the single payment, the money would be taxed all to hell. The annuity was the option I was leaning towards, even if I was paid a certain amount every year, that meant I would have some sort of windfall the following year in case anything happened, especially since I didn't want all of that money to go to my head all at once. Regardless, I was now set up for life.

  After accepting the annuity and filling out the needed paperwork for where the money would be deposited, I immediately got into my car and left the parking lot. I called my workplace right then and there, announcing to my manager that I was quitting. I hanged up before they could even respond as I wanted to leave all the bitter memories of customer service and cashiering behind.

  In my excitement, I forgot to turn the navigation app back on in my phone since I was in an area that wasn't familiar to me and I didn't want to get lost. Little did I know... that in about four seconds, my life would change yet again.

  One second, I turn on the screen of my phone. Two seconds, I unlock my phone and it opens up to the navigation app. Three seconds, I tap on my home address so that the app can guide me back... suddenly something feels off as I could swear that there's now a shadow. Four seconds... I hear a loud crash, I feel my body violently jolt, and my forehead slammed against something... and the world around me goes black.