An Illinois man who realized he had won $3 million after scratching off a lottery ticket in a 7-Eleven parking lot promptly went back into the store to do something very important: hug the owner.
The Illinois Lottery says that the winner, who would like to remain anonymous, recently bought a 200X Payout Instant Ticket at the 7-Eleven in Mount Prospect, just northwest of Chicago.
A regular customer at the convenience store, the man did what he usually does after buying a ticket, heading out to his truck and scratching it off. He told the Lottery that he just had to go back in the store and hug the owner.
“The owner, his wife, and his son are very nice people,” he told the Lottery. “The owner said to his wife recently, ‘That guy is going to win someday! He always comes in, sits in his truck, and scratches his tickets – and he’s always so happy. He’s definitely going to win.'”
The man’s wife was the second person to find out that they’re now millionaires.
“When I got home, I left the winning ticket on the kitchen table for my wife to find,” he told the Lottery. “She said, ‘Are you messing with me? Is this real?’ For years, she’s joked with me, ‘Can’t you just win the lottery already?’ Well, we did! And just in time for retirement.”