Josh smiled. "Relax. That was an old movie ticket."

Mandy eyed her husband. Josh's looks made her the envy of everyone, but she'd trade the sexy stubble and six-pack for brains and ambition.

"OK." Mandy walked away.

"Where ya going?"

"Basement. This is the last time I do laundry. I'm getting out of this dump!"

The realization that they held the winning Jackpot ticket was sinking in. For a week, they'd remained silent, waiting for the media frenzy to build. That way, Josh reasoned, they'd get more money for their story. So far, so good.

"Jesus Christ!" Josh barreled down the stairs.

"What's wrong?"

"My jeans! Where are they?"

Numbly, Mandy opened the dryer. Shriveled bits of tattered paper littered the vent. Her future, in pieces. Josh was sobbing. Mandy spied a hammer and smiled. She was getting out of this dump. Today.

"Uh, yeah, what's so freaky about that?" Josh asked. "I mean, that's what you do to stains- you put stain remover on them. And it's not like I only do this on April Fools day. You know very well that I am very careful about my football shirts, and I make sure that every stain gets out."

All through this narrative, Mandy's face had become more and more animated. Finally, at this last statement, unable to hold back, she yelled with laughter:

"That wasn't a stain at all! And that wasn't stain remover either! The so called 'stain' was only chalk, and the REAL stain was in the stain remover bottle - permanent ink! Hahahaha....You make sure every stain gets out, eh? Well this time I made sure that you made sure that the stain stayed in! April Fool!!!!!"

"Undercover cop's car?" Josh asked. "How do you know it's an undercover cop's car?"

Mandy pulled a set of keys from her pocket, along with a set of handcuffs and walleted shield. "Let's just call it a hunch, fool."