8:30 pm
** text alert**
Needle (Tailor)
[ AHHH, I can't stand her >_<*]
[she already has everything, why can't she
just leave him to the rest of us?!?!]
Green Bean (Louie)
[didn't you just say you wanted
to be her an hour ago?]
Needle
[THAT'S NOT THE POINT, GB]
[you wouldn't understand..
you 've never felt a love like this <333]
Green Bean
[I'm going back to campus early]
[I'm sorry I won't make it to your
familes event this year but I promise
I'll help at the next pop up!, ly]
Needle
[:/ okayyy you promised, so
you have to be there!]
[safe trip back, ly <3]
[tell me when you make it home, okay?!]
**end conversation**
It's like this every break. I'm forced to go back home, forced to do the housework, forced to speak, then yelled at to shut up. If I breathe wrong I'm kicked out. Walk too loud and I get hit until I understand what 'quiet' is. God forbid I go get a snack without asking. I know mom is trying to make me a 'good son' but I don't know how much more I can give her.
I give her money every month, I got a full ride so she wouldn't have to pay tuition and I contacted Uncle Reese so I could stay in his apartment. Maybe I'm not doing enough after dad left. Maybe things will get better after I graduate.
The bus ride back felt like an eternity. Louie's anxiety started to pound in his chest and the metal walls of the bus were echoing his thoughts right back at him. The air got hot, sweaty almost. He softly patted his chest to ease the panic. A slight breeze from the window in front of him helped bring him back. Louie looked out the window and his eyes quickly widened with fear, then relaxed with disappointment as he pulled the bell for the bus to make a stop.
"Damn it, missed my stop."
9:20 pm
Louie got off a couple blocks from his apartment. He sighed, droped his shoulders and began his walk home. He always packed light when he visited his mom as it typically turned into him being kicked out. Less physical weight for him to lug around.
**~ grumble~**
Louie paused and looked down at his stomach.
Hmmm, maybe I should eat. That might help me feel better too. I am close to Aunties... if I run, I can make it!
Louie tightened his back pack straps and sprinted to his regular dining spot. A hole in the wall Chinese restaurant owned by an older woman who insisted on being called Auntie. She was in her 60s, with short, fine gray hair, a hunched back, and a well seasoned pallet. Louie often helped her organize the orders that came in on Sunday's. She liked to make sure Louie was eating, so she asked him for help in return for meals.
9:45 pm
** the faint chime of small bells on the door**
"Xiao bao! What are you doing back so
early? Sit. Let's eat!"
YOU ARE READING
Banana Milk Studies
RomansaLouie Chang, a sophomore at UC Berkeley, has worked for everything and everyone in his life. Struggling to find his purpose in the world, he encounters a series of events that will lead him down a path he never thought was possible. And who is to bl...
