Even If You Beg

Chapter 9

Can's POV

At first the drive back home from Mr. Medthanan's mansion was quiet. I looked at the other cars on the other lanes, my two fingers tightly crossed, hoping that my father would not bring up the topic of my running away from Mr. Medthanan's dining room. Fat chance that was.

"So.....Cantaloupe....." my dad started to say.

I grimaced at his calling me Cantaloupe instead of Can but mostly I grimaced because I knew what he was going to bring up.

"Tell me in a few words why you ran away from the dining room right after we entered it."

"Because he loves Tin but he is taken! He is Pete's boyfriend!" my sister Lay spoke up for the first time.

I hit my sister on her arm.

"Ouch! Why did you hit me, P'Can?" Lay protested, "I was just saying the truth!"

"Dad, what Lay is saying is not true at all!" I said, "First of all, I'm not in love with Tin! And second of all, Tin is not Pete's boyfriend."

"Who is this Pete?" my father asked.

"He's that rich kid from the IC section of the university where only rich students go to study," Lay volunteered the information.

"Cantaloupe," again my father addressed me, "you still have not told me why you ran away from the dinner table. And Lemon, let Can speak for himself."

"Dad," I said, "he had said some very rude and mean comments to me and my friends when he saw me and my friends hanging out with his friend Pete. He looks down on low level income students like me and my friends."

"Hmmmmmm......" my father said thoughtfully, his eyes keenly on the traffic around us.

I could not guess at all what my father was thinking. I was hoping though that my revelation about his boss's son would not affect his good working relationship with his boss.

Suddenly, my mother spoke up, "Wait a second, how forgetful of me! No wonder he looked so familiar to me. Wasn't he the one who helped us out with our dog at the vet? He seemed like a very nice helpful young man to me."

"Mom," I said patiently, "don't get all excited. He was only being nice because of your presence and Lay's. If it had just been him and me, he would have been saying a lot of rude and arrogant things again to me. That's why I walk away from him as soon as I see him coming in my direction."

My father was still quiet and looking thoughtful as we all climbed out of the car after he parked it in our family garage.

I hoped that when the right time comes, I will be able to persuade him to drive my own car. I had just recently obtained my driving license but my father had told me to wait until he had the budget to buy me a car. That was before he got promoted to his present position in his company. Now that he was the Chief Financial Officer, I was sure that he got a significant increase in his salary.

Maybe, now that he knows how Tin had looked down on me because I was not on the same financial level as he was, and because I did not have my own car, maybe, just maybe, my father would have some sympathy on me and decide that it was time for me to have my own car.

I am absolutely positive that my father is psychic! As soon as we stepped inside the house, he turned to me and said, "Cantaloupe, you still have your driver's license, right?"

"Right," I said, my heart pounding with excitement in my chest.

"Tomorrow is Sunday," he said, "let's you and I go to the nearest Ford dealer. I might be able to afford a two door Ford Focus for you."

"Thank you, Dad!!!" I exclaimed. "I can't wait till tomorrow!!!"