One Last Chance

Engfa's Crybaby

The Waraha-Austin porch nestled between hibiscus shrubs and the soft whisper of a tall mango tree swaying in the morning breeze. When Charlotte first came over, she marveled at the amount of greenery amongst the tall cement walls, later she remembered that Engfa had once said she wanted her own garden to resemble her mother’s home. Now, the yard had a section where they tended to chilis and a variety of vegetables, specifically fenced up to prevent Phalo from eating everything.

The scent of jasmine hung in the air, mingling with the faint spice of lemongrass drifting from the kitchen window. Charlotte sat on the swing in the porch with a content smile as she enjoyed a lemon tea while listening to music. Once in a while, she could hear laughter and grunts coming from indoors. It made her smile in peace as she stroked Phalo’s fur on her lap. 

“Pivot, pivot, pivot, phi!!!!!” Engfa’s scream rang out from the opened sliding door, followed by more sounds of struggles from everyone. 

“Hold it higher, mook!!” Patcha yelled after her. 

“Sao, I’m dying!!” P’Sun’s voice grunted. 

Charlotte laughed out loud and decided to check it out. She went back inside and saw four adults trying to push a queen bed down the stairs. She supported her lower back with one hand and leaned her hips to one side, she chuckled, “Are you guys okay?”

“Yup, we got this, baby.” Engfa grinned with sweat pouring all over her forehead, all her baby hair had stuck to her face. Whilst she turned her head to look at her wife, she got distracted and the bed slid downwards. She screamed, “Wai!!!!!!!”

Chaotic screams filled the air as the bed went wild and slid all the way down to the ground floor with a large ‘thump!’. 

“Well, that got the job done.” P’Daad wiped her sweat away. “Remind me again why didn’t we hire a moving squad?” 

“We haven’t announced the pregnancy and isn't it so fun to build your nieces’ nursery?” Engfa grinned cheekily, “Plus, you can skip gym day this week with all these workouts.” 

“Right.” P’Daad threw the mini towel full of her sweat towards her sister who flicked it away in disgust. “That’s everything in the room right?” They had managed to move every furniture out so the soon to be nursery is now empty. 

“Where are you even gonna keep this large bed, Engfa.” P’Sun panted with his hands on his knees. 

Charlotte fetched them all a tall glass of iced lemon tea and caringly wiped her wife’s sweat with a hand towel. 

“I guess we can just drag it to the store room first.” Engfa shrugged and thanked her wife with a smile. 

“I told Fa fa to hire movers for this but she didn’t want to listen, look how tired you are. How is Fa going to work tomorrow?” Charlotte reprimanded with heartache and tried to fan her wife. 

“It’s tiring but worth it, baby.” Engfa smiled reassuringly at her. “I love how we’re making memories by making the nursery instead of hiring strangers to do it.” 

“When are you going to feed us, Mook?” Patcha downed her lemon tea and huffed good naturedly. 

“Nuu has ordered pizza for everyone, come eat!” Charlotte quickly pushed everyone to the dining room where boxes of pizzas laid out in a single file next to a tray of grilled chicken wings. She had even cut a platter of fruits on the table.

“Char loves us more than you, Engfa.” P’Sun grumbled as he snatched a slice of chicken pepperoni. 

“Hey, she paid for the pizzas with my money!” Engfa defended herself while chewing on her own slice.