Wrote this as part of the backstory for my project.
Another post-it note on the fridge door again.
“Dear, we are having a late function tonight. The money for your dinner is on your table.
Love, Mum and Dad.”
Twenty dollars worth of love. Or love that is worth only the bits and pieces of cash accumulated on my table for the past nineteen years of my life?
…
Why should I bother at all. They don’t.
Twenty dollars tonight. With another sixty from the past few days. This should be enough.
Ring, ring.
“Of course I am free tonight. Same time at the old place? Alright, see you!”
Cling.
“Mum and dad. I am having a late function tonight. I took the money on my table.
Your daughter.”
***
SMASH.
She is at it again. She and her ‘golden companions’ to last her for the night.
SMASH.
“Why? I should have gotten rid of you years ago when I had the chance. Save me all the money and trouble to have you grow up and oppose me like that.”
SMASH.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Not happy? How can you be not happy?. Tell me, where were you when your dad was in the hospital? Where were you when he was knocked down by the lorry? Weren’t you supposed to be taking care of him?”
“Why are you still staring at me? Not happy? Not happy then get the hell out of here. I don’t need you. You don’t need me anyway.”
And there she is, slumping on the sofa like a half dead cat and sobbing like an injured child. With another bottle on her hand. Her record breaking feat of three straight nights of intoxication suddenly became unsurprising to me. How did it start? She has been screaming at me ever since she stumbled upon my bottle of beer in my bag. Screaming and screaming. Like she had never touched a drop of those things before.
“You know, you know, how hard it has been for me ever since that fucking lorry ran over your dad just because, just because…”
They had a quarrel that day when it happened.
“Then I have to work day and night to pay for the flat, pay for the electricity, pay for the water, pay for your food, pay for your studies, pay for your…”
SMASH.
There she goes again.
“IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT! IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT!”
I need to leave. Now.
“Are you free tonight? Yeah, same place. See you.”
BANG. My turn to make some noise with the metal gate.
***
“Your mum is at it again?”
“What do you think?”
“I see. That sucks.”
“Well, I am used to it already.”
“…”
“Your parents are out again?”
“What do you think?”
“Heh, I see. At least they do not throw stuff around the house.”
“Well, sometimes I really hoped that they did. At least it will show that they care.”
“Hah, what a way to show concern. I rather she leave me and the stuff around the house alone.”
“So you are suggesting that we switch parents?”
“Hahaha… you’ve got to be kidding me? You wouldn’t want my parents to be yours.”
“Mine neither. You must be drunk.”
“NO I AM NOT! You crazy…”
“…”
“Come on, girls. Let’s not think about the unhappy stuff. There’s enough booze for everyone tonight!”
“Yeah!”
“I have Red Bull and Tequila here. Who’s up to it?”
***
Bottles of vodka, red bull and tiger lay around the darkly lit room while Amy, Janet, Derrick and the rest of the gang shared their dreams.
Amy wished that she could graduate with top honours so that she could get a good job and earn big bucks and then she could have nice LV bags and Chanel glasses. And perhaps use some extra cash to buy her mum and dad’s time.
Janet also wished that she could graduate with top honours so that she would not feel useless anymore. Then her mum would stop drinking all day long, blaming her for all the problems that happen to her family.
Derrick also wished to graduate with top honours so that he could get a good job and earn big bucks and then girls will be attracted to him and his future Porsche or Lamborghini. Then he can feel more deserving of certain girls in his life, like Amy.
After the sharing session, Derrick proposed to take the gang out for a spin with his dad’s car around the area. It was a fun night for them, for they managed to evade the highway camera twice, beat the traffic lights thrice and eventually rammed into an old Angsana tree at the side of the road.
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