Fortune cookie messages are usually quickly brushed off.
But for a Maryland man, it paid off to listen to his – to the tune of $100,000.
Diego Caceres and his brother Domingo were wrapping up a meal at a Chinese restaurant last month when a fortune cookie informed Caceres it was his lucky day.
He pushed the thought to the back of his mind until he was checking out at a 7-Eleven later that day. Remembering his fortune, Caceres decided to borrow money from his brother to buy a Power 8s scratch-off ticket.
Caceres quickly received more than enough money to pay his brother back: The scratch-off awarded him a $100,000 prize.
The winner had only tried his luck at the lottery once before, but it hadn’t panned out. He said he decided to try the Power 8s ticket this time because 8 is a lucky number for him, and it’s the jersey number of his favorite soccer player.
The brothers plan to put the money toward a multi-destination vacation and possibly some professional soccer game tickets.
“We’ll live a little,” Caceres, 25, said in a statement to the Maryland Lottery. “We are young!”