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The word slices through my chest like a knife.
“Mum, you’re out of line,” Nathan hisses at Annie.
A laughingstock. It’s true that my family talks differently, and does a ton of ridiculous things, but I’ve always understood why they say and do the things that they do.Laughingstock.It twists, burning with white-hot guilt. I guess part of me has always tried to hide my family because I know they can seem strange to outsiders. So maybe I’m a hypocrite for feeling this rage, especially since I’m complicit in trying to make my family conform. Haven’t I been trying to tone them down all my life?
But the look on their faces is too much to bear. I can’t stand it. I won’t ever be able to erase that look of hurt on Ma’s face from my memories. I glare at Annie. “Maybe they don’t fit into your anal view of what the world should look like, but they are not the laughingstock here.”
Annie narrows her eyes at me. Chris sighs and clears his throat. Hope rises for a second. Maybe he’ll tell Annie she’s out of line.“I’m very sorry, Meddy, but I have to agree with Annie. Your family’s behavior is very strange, and I’m not saying that to mock them,” he quickly adds. “But it’s honestly quite unacceptable.”
“It’s ridiculous!” Annie says.
“That’s enough, Mum, Dad.”
I’m burning up with so many emotions. Anger at Nathan’s parents, mostly, for daring to speak about my family like that. But deep down inside, there’s also shame. Because I know they’re right. An outsider, looking at my family objectively, would think they are truly a ridiculous bunch. And we’ve spent the entire day running around doing utterly ridiculous things. Things that, under the circumstances, are understandable—to those in the know, at least—but are inexplicable to an outside observer who isn’t aware of what’s going on. And even without the whole mafia threat, my family is a lot to take in. I know this, I know, but still. To have Nathan’s parents point them out with such awful ferocity is too much.
“Look, can we please just talk?” Nathan says, lowering his voice.
“Ah, yes, you kids talk, okay?” Ma says before I can answer. “We get out of way. Okay, toodles, cheerio!”
“And stop talking like that!” Annie snaps.
“Don’t tell them how to talk,” I snap back. As soon as the words are out, I clamp my mouth shut. Holy shit. What have I just done?
“Meddy, you cannot talk to elders like that,” Ma gasps, a look of absolute horror on her face. “You say sorry now.”
“I’m sorry,” I say immediately. The words just flop out automatically. I couldn’t have stopped them if I tried.
“You don’t need to apologize,” Nathan sighs. “Mum, you’re being quite horrible.”
“Nathan!” Ma cries. “You cannot talk to your mama like that, no!”
Nathan and Annie stare at Ma with confusion.
“But I’m defending you,” Nathan says slowly.
“No matter, you cannot say such thing to parent,” Big Aunt says, sternly.
Second Aunt nods with her mouth pressed into a thin line. “Meddy, you embarrass us, talking to mother-in-law like that.”
I throw up my hands. Of course this is what unites them. Annie can be as horrible as she wants toward them and they’ll take it in stride, but woe befall anyone in the younger generation who dares to talk back to Annie. I take in a breath through gritted teeth. “You’re right, of course. I’m sorry, Annie.”
Ma’s eyes go so wide they look like they’re about to fall out.
“I mean, I’m sorry, uh—Mom,” I bite out.
Ma relaxes, smiling proudly at me.
“Oh, that’s alright, you can keep calling me Annie,” she says, obviously uncomfortable.
“No!” Big Aunt barks. “Impossible. No, cannot.”
Second Aunt shakes her head in agreement. “Cannot, no. Tidak boleh.”
“Not respect,” Ma explains to them. “How can younger generation call us by name? Impossible. No, I cannot allow.”
Annie grimace-smiles. She’s thrown off-balance, and I can’t blame her. Just minutes ago she was geared for a fight with my family, and now they’re defending her right to be horrible toward them.
“I think maybe it’s best if we all retire for the night,” I cut in. “We can all sit down and talk tomorrow?” Plus, it’s just hit me that I don’t know where Staphanie and Ama are. I need to get rid of my family and Nathan’s and somehow find Staphanie.