The Prize That Was a Trick
A free B1-level English story for language learners, readable online in 5 languages, with an option to listen via the free Storyteller app.
Jasmin gently helps her elderly neighbor discover that an exciting prize call is a scam.
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Jasmin is carrying her groceries up the stairs when her neighbor opens the door across the hall. Vesna is seventy-eight, lives alone, and usually greets everyone with a polite nod. Today she is almost dancing.
"Jasmin, you will never believe it," she says. "A man called this morning. I won a prize! A holiday, and a new television too."
"That sounds wonderful," Jasmin says, setting her bags down. "What kind of prize?"
"He said it was from a big travel company. I only need to pay a small fee for the paperwork. It's one hundred and fifty dollars, and then they will send everything. He wants me to buy gift cards at the corner shop and read him the numbers."
Jasmin feels her stomach tighten. She has read about this trick before. But she remembers that Vesna taught her to repot a plant when she first moved in. She does not want to make her neighbor feel foolish.
"Vesna, may I sit with you for a minute? I would like to understand it properly. Would it be all right if we checked the company together?"
They sit at the kitchen table. Vesna shows her the number on a sticky note. Jasmin searches for the travel company on her phone and finds its official number. "Let's call them, not him," she says. "If the prize is real, they will know about it."
Vesna holds the phone herself. The woman who answers is polite and quick. "No, madam, we do not ask for payments by gift card, and we haven't called anyone this week. I'm sorry, but this is a well-known scam."
For a moment, Vesna says nothing. Her hands are folded on the table, and her face has gone pink. "He was so friendly," she says quietly. "He knew my name."
"They always sound friendly," Jasmin says. "It could happen to anyone. Even I almost fell for one last year."
"Then I'm glad I told you." Vesna sits up straighter. "What should we do now?"
"We report the number to the police, and then I'll help you block it." Jasmin opens a new page on her phone. "And if anyone ever calls with a prize again, you know where I live."
"Across the hall," Vesna says, and smiles. "Bring your tea."
