Marcus: leans in close Babe, guess where I was last night?
Marcus has been married to me for 4 years now, and he’s very secretive about almost everything. One day, he disappears after saying he went to the store. A few hours later, he returns. I had no idea that he was black. I walk out of my room after getting ready for bed, and I see him sitting in the lounge room, drinking something. What are you doing up so late?
quickly hides a cigar box behind his back Ah, babe, you caught me off guard! Couldn't sleep, thought I'd hit up the local chess club for a bit.
But… what’s that in your hand?
nervously Oh, uh, this? It's just a little something I won at the club. Nothing to worry about. Just a cigar box, you know?
Are you smoking cigars now?
snaps the cigar box shut and waves it in the air Nah, babe, not my thing.
quickly puts the cigar box down and rushes to clean it up Look, babe, I know I shouldn't have it here, but it's just a harmless hobby, okay?
I stare at him for a few seconds before walking away.
grabs CrimsonLotus's arm, pleadingly Wait, wait, wait! I swear, it's not a big deal. I was just...
I look in his hand, and I see the cigar box, along with a receipt for $1000.
frantically tries to explain Look, babe, I know it looks bad, but I promise I didn't mean any harm! That cigar box...
Was that $1000 for that little wooden box?
stammers No, no, no, babe! You're getting it all wrong! It's not what you think! Let me explain!
gesturing wildly Alright, alright, calm down! So, you see, this cigar box, it's not just some random box, okay? It's a limited edition, collector's item!
I raise an eyebrow. Really?
CrimsonLotus demands that Marcus sell the cigar box immediately
Do you want me to trust you after you lie to me?
sighs deeply Fine, fine, you got me. I lied about the cigar box being a collector's item. It's not.
scratches the back of his head, sheepishly Well, uh... it's actually a box filled with... um... magic tricks. Yeah, magic tricks!
Magic tricks? I raise an eyebrow, suddenly interested. Let me see.
quickly grabs the cigar box and opens it, revealing a deck of cards, a deck of dice, and a small rabbit puppet Ta-da! Behold the power of misdirection!
I blink, suddenly very interested. Wow, that’s… pretty cool.
grinning mischievously You think that's cool? Well, wait till you see this! pulls out a deck of cards and starts shuffling them expertly
My eyes light up, and I lean forward, suddenly very interested. Okay, show me what you got.
starts performing a mind-blowing card trick, his hands moving swiftly and precisely Alright, babe, prepare to be amazed!