The funeral was well put together by the three siblings, they worked the whole day on Saturday preparing for the wake. Most of the relatives came respectfully even though they didn’t want to be there. The next day was the burial; it was over the hill top. Their father had originally bought the land for his grave, he thought ahead for his family. He never wanted to burden anyone, that was one thing that Freddie always respected about his father.
Virginia stood in the back as she watched the service taking place. Dressed in a black suit, she had on her black sunglasses which hid her eyes carefully. She didn’t want to pull Freddie away from his family so she was aloof with everyone there. But it wasn’t enough for him not to recognize her. He saw her at the corner of his eyes but waited until most of the crowd was gone until he snuck up behind her. “Ahem.” He cleared his throat.
She jumped at the sudden sound, when she spun around, she found her friend smiling back at her “I didn’t want to bother you.” She whispered.
“Why are you whispering?” he whispered back. “The dead can’t hear you.” He said.
She muffled a giggle “I just wanted to be respectful.”
He shook his head “You are by just coming here.”
She smiled and her eyes wandered to the female figure behind him. She was kneeling on the ground crying “Your mother’s not doing well huh?” she nodded. “Come on.” She motioned for him to follow her.
“She’s taking it very hard.” He sighed as he bent over the crying lady and gave her a hug. “Mom, this is my friend Virginia.”
The lady sniffed a few times before controlling herself “Thank you for coming.” Her voice cracked.
Virginia gave a grim smile “I may not have known your husband but Freddie is a good friend of mine. I still need to be respectful, auntie.”
The lady nodded “Son, why don’t you greet the guests, I’ll be fine.” She took the tissue that Linda gave her and wiped her tears.
Freddie nodded “Yes mom.” He stood up and gave Virginia a pat on the shoulder “Thanks for coming. You should go home, I’ll be here for a while.” She nodded in reply and went back to her car.
***********
Jim didn’t have that much of his belongings, just a few pairs of jeans and some t-shirts. It wasn’t hard to move into Deana’s apartment. “Thanks again for letting me stay, I promise, as soon as I find another place, I’ll move out.”
Deana smiled “That’s fine. Whenever you get sick of me, just let me know.”
He laughed “I’ll never get sick of you.” It was almost scary the way he said it, yet she pushed it aside.
“Anyways, I’ve got to go home and visit my parents. So you might have to be on your own.” She checked his face to see if he was uncomfortable but he looked as normal as ever.
“That’s okay, I’ll just make myself comfortable. Don’t mind me.” He said brightly.
She wrinkled her nose “You’re so different from that guy that was holding me hostage earlier.” She joked.
Jim smiled as he gave a slight shrug “People change. Anyways, I was crazy then, now Im normal. Well, go on. You’re gonna hit traffic.” He pushed her out the door.
She laughed “Okay, there’s food in the fridge, help yourself to anything but my room!” she yelled as she caught the next elevator.
***********
Virginia got home around noon but she had no intent on staying home. She changed into her jeans and a simple tee as she headed towards the mall. On the way to her car, her cell phone started to ring. “Hello?” she picked it up.
“Ginny?”
“Yeah. Who’s calling please?” she asked politely.
“Its Jeff. Um, I was wondering if you would….uh…” he didn’t know how to word it.
“Have you ate lunch yet?” she smiled at his awkwardness.
“No!” he replied quickly.
“Wanna join me at that The Frying Fish in the mall? Its Japanese food.”
“Yes! I’ll see you in ten minutes.” He said before she had the chance to change her mind “Bye.”
“Bye.” She shook her head. It was strange, she’s not use to having guys ask her out yet she didn’t feel uncomfortable when she talked to them. She had a quick perception to people and knew right away that Jeff and Jeremy both were attracted to her.
She got to the mall in fifteen minutes and by the time she got to the restaurant, Jeff was already waiting for her. He got up from his chair as he waved her over. “Is it traffic outside?” he asked casually.
Virginia smiled “No, not really. I just drive slow.” She joked.
“Well, what do you want to start off with?”
She shrugged her shoulders “Salmon? Yellowtail? I don’t know. Im up for anything.”
He smiled “Easy going huh? That’s good cause I already ordered one of each.”
Her eyes widened “What? That’s a lot of food!”
“I eat a lot.” He said slyly. The food came out and it practically filled up the whole table “Oh my gosh…” he whispered.
“I told you!” she exclaimed before digging into the sushi. They ate most of the dishes and after half an hour, Virginia sat back in her chair “Oh gosh, Im full. I can’t eat anymore.” She rubbed her tummy in pain.
“Come on, you did pretty good there. Have another one.” He put the rolls on her dish.
“Maybe in a while, Im too stuffed.”
He smiled as he sat back “Okay, sounds fair enough. Ginny?”
Her eyebrows raised “Hmm mm?”
“Can I ask you something personal?”
She smiled “Nothing’s too personal.”
“Do you have a boyfriend?” he asked straightforwardly.
She looked away “No. I don’t think I’ll ever find a guy that will accept my profession and passion for helping people.”
He felt like saying ‘I will!’ but fought back the urge. “I see.” was all he said.
“And how about you Lai Sir? Do you have a girlfriend?”
The blood rushed to his face as he blushed profusely “I did, but it didn’t work out. She couldn’t accept my on call job. You see this?” he pulled his pager from his belt. “This is my heartbeat. Once it starts to beep, Im there wherever they need me.”
She nodded “I know what you mean.” She sighed “Sometimes I wonder why we work so hard at saving people when they will all die one day. You will not believe the patients that come into my office. They’re such a mess with their lives and Im not sure if I even help them.”
“Why would you assume that?”
She sat up in her chair and leaned on her elbows “Well, we both work with suicidal victims. I mean there is something in their lives that makes them want to die. I wonder sometimes why they would want to do such a thing? Its an easy way out of your problems.”
“That’s very true. I think some people give up too easy. You need to stand up and fight. If life gives you a bad thing, you take it and throw it back in life’s face.”
Virginia grinned “That’s very strong of you to think. Such a shame that most people don’t think that way. Believe it or not, I’m really a pessimist.”
“Really?” his eyes widened with curiosity “That’s surprising considering you tell people to cheer up every day.”
“Just because I know the concept of wishful thinking, but in truth, I tend to think of the worse scenario out of a situation. That way, when something bad happens, it won’t be too bad compared to the worse thing.” She wrinkled her forehead “Do you understand?”
He smiled “That’s deep, but I think I understand your concept.” He picked up his chopsticks “Okay, let me at em!”
She chuckled as he attacked the sushi and stuffed it in his mouth “Its all yours!” she teased He mumbled something incoherent and she laughed louder “You want some more. Okay.” She picked up her chopsticks and dug into the eel as she stuffed it in his mouth.
He didn’t want to decline her sweet gesture so he opened his mouth and took the food in. His cheeks were blown up like tiny balloons as he tried to chew faster.
**************
After the funeral, the family returned to the house where tables were set up in rows for the gathering. They had prepared a big meal for the guests. Freddie saw a lot of family members that he hasn’t seen in a long time, none of whom acknowledge him. They all talked to Linda and Michael while Freddie hid in the kitchen helping the cooks.
Outside, friends began to arrive as the doorbell was rung nonstop, the tables were beginning to fill up. Linda was showing some guests in when the doorbell rang again, she opened it. Her face brightened “Jerry!” she gave him a warm hug as he smiled and embraced her back.
“I told you not to call me that. That was my high school nickname, call me Remy.” He pulled away as he examined her from head to toe. “You haven’t aged a bit since the last time I saw you.”
She laughed “I’ll take that as a compliment since I haven’t seen you since high school. Come on in.” she pulled him through the door.
“I heard about your father’s death so I came to give my condolences.”
She nodded “Yeah, its been a mess since he left. But at least I have my brother back.”
“Oh? The one that’s gay?”
“Yeah.” She smiled grimly “He’s still my brother afterall. I can’t ignore him for life.”
“Really? I believe I was the one that quoted that line?” he said with a bit of snobbish tone.
“Oh yeah, I knew I remembered it from someone.” She laughed as he stuck his chin up in the air. “Come on snobby, I’ll introduce him to you.” She looked around but didn’t see him in the living room so she tried the kitchen. She found him helping the cook set the dishes “Freddie!” she called and waved him over.
Freddie looked up and saw the guy behind his sister, he looked so familiar “You, have I met you somewhere?” he pointed to Jeremy.
Linda looked from one guy to the other “You two know each other?”
Jeremy smiled “A big misunderstanding. My little sister and your brother got in a fight.”
“The one at the bar you told me about?” she asked, her eyes widened. Freddie nodded with a huge grin on his face. Linda burst out laughing “Oh my gosh, and all this time you were here brother. Oh boy, you’ve got one feisty sister, my friend.” She tapped Jeremy on the shoulder.
“Oh no, don’t tell me you used you tongue slashing language on her.” He asked half in fear and half jokingly. After all she was still his sister and it was natural reaction to protect her.
Linda nodded weakly “Im sorry. I didn’t know.”
He sighed “That’s okay, she needed a lesson anyways. Well, you need help with anything?” he asked Freddie who shook his head in response.
“No, you’re a guest. I wouldn’t hear of it. Freddie, if you get tired, have Michael help you.”
“I will.” He answered before bidding them goodbye.
Chapter 8
Virginia Chan – Vivian Leung
Freddie Lam – Nick Cheung
Robert Fong – Benny Chan
Marc Cheung – Gallen Lo
Tracy Wong – Kenix Kwok
The rest of the night flew by for Freddie as he kept himself busy. He got occasional hisses and whispers from some of his cousins, but his sister put them in their places. He forgot how overprotective she really was. That night he returned home exhausted. He wore the same clothes for a full day, it was against his fashion rule. ‘You must change within 8 hours.’
He opened the door expecting to see his friend, instead it was empty, even the lights were off. He wondered if she was working overtime again. He was so tired that he planned to sleep as soon as he got out of the shower. When he got out of the bathroom, he noticed that was shining from the living room but he was certain that he turned them off. “Ginny?” he called out.
There was no answer, so he walked outside slowly. ‘Maybe there’s a burglar’ he wondered to himself. He tiptoed as he peeked his toweled head at the end of the hallway. Suddenly he heard a loud bang, he jumped in his place as he cried out in a high pitch voice, but he quickly covered his mouth to keep himself from screaming.
“Shoot!” a voice cursed.
He peeked his head out to the living room but didn’t see anyone, the voice seemed to be coming from the kitchen. “Who’s there??” his voice shaking “I’ve got a bat.” He warned.
“You sure you know how to use it?” Virginia’s voice sang out sweetly.
He let out a long sigh of relief “Oh my gosh, you scared the crap out of me!! Why didn’t you answer?”
“I didn’t hear you!” she cried back. “We don’t have a bat.”
He rolled his eyes, “I know. I was trying to scare the burglar.” Suddenly his eyes bulged outward as he stared at the kitchen floor “Oh my gosh!! What in the world are you trying to do? Paint this floor with flour??!!”
Sprawled out on the floor were masses of flour. Virginia was trying to clean it up but she was getting white flour all over her own clothes. “I dropped it, what’s the big deal? I swear, Freddie, you can be such a drama queen.”
He flicked his eyebrows upward as he stared down at her “You know it, girl! Here, let me help.” He brought the half empty bag into the sink and rinsed a towel. Covering the mass as he collected the flour from the edge of the tile and piled it up into the middle section. She stood back and watched him clean. After he finished, he noticed that she was smiling at him “What would you do without me Dr. Chan?”
“You’ve asked that before and I answered it before. I don’t like to repeat myself.” She placed her hands on her hips “You missed a spot.” She pointed to the section he was standing on.
“Look Missy. Im a perfectionist, I’ll never leave any spots.” His eyes rolled around again as he rinsed the towel. “What are you doing with flour anyway.”
She looked away shyly “I wanted to bake some cupcakes.”
“Cupcakes? Well first of all, the flour is suppose to be mixed in a bowl. Second of all, we have no milk or eggs left. I haven’t gone to the store yet.” He opened the fridge and showed her the empty spaces.
She frowned “I didn’t know you needed that.”
He laughed “Okay, Dr. Chan, what’s with the sudden love for cooking?”
She shrugged “I guess it should be about time I learn how to cook.”
“Oh my gosh.” He covered his mouth dramatically “You’ve got a boyfriend! I knew it, is it that cute officer?” he winked knowingly.
She chuckled “Of course not! Can’t a girl learn how to cook? I can’t depend on you all the time.” She said sadly as she walked out to the living room. He was close behind her.
“What do you mean?”
“We’ll I suppose you’ll move out soon since you and you’re siblings are talking to you again. I don’t want to hold you back from your family.”
He took a seat next to her on the couch as he pushed her head into his shoulder roughly “Awww, my little baby is growing up. Don’t worry Mommy will always be here for you.” He teased.
She pushed him away “No! You cannot always take care of me.”
“Why not?” he asked innocently.
“Because you’re gay and Im straight. Maybe I’ll get married one day, but Im not sure about you. But you should be with your family, they need you right now. Your mother needs you.” She reasoned.
He let out a sigh “Ginny, come on. Get serious, you think I really want to move home when I can live here for free with you?”
Her eyes shot up from the floor “Really? You would rather live with me than your family?”
He smiled “Of course! You know, I never realized how narrow-minded they were until today. You should have seen the glares that I got from them. They just never seize to amaze me. Just because Im gay.”
“Im sorry to hear that.” She said sincerely.
“So am I. But think on the bright side, I have a great friend that won’t judge me because of my sexuality…and she supports me too! I have a roof over my head and my own room, what more could a guy ask for?”
“Since when are you a ‘guy’”? she teased.
He laughed “Since that she-boy called me a half and half. I guess in a way I need to make sense of all this. I mean, I have all the organs of a man yet I want to be a woman. I guess I’ll save money and turn myself into a real woman.”
She winced in horror at what he was saying “That’s disgusting.” She commented.
He let out a sharp laugh “I was kidding, silly!! I don’t think I’ll ever change any part of my body. I mean look at me.” He stood up flexing his puny muscles. “Im perfect, baby.”
She burst out laughing as she shook her head “Yes, you are, my dear. You sure are.”
“Well, come on, I’ll teach you a few easy dishes.” He got up ready to cook at 1 o’clock in the morning.
Virginia let out a wide yawn “Oh no, Im too tired, maybe some other time.” He leered at her with his hands at his hips “Get real, if you’re gonna stay here, why should I learn how to cook? There’s no use having two chefs in the house.” She rushed to her room before he could say anything else.
***********
The next day, Virginia left early for work since she had an appointment with a patient. Outside was the waiting room where Tracy waited patiently for her. She held in her hand some flowers for Virginia. Her face had more color and she seemed to have enough sleep. She was waiting patiently for about half an hour when she noticed a guy walking in “Hi.” He greeted the receptionist.
“Can I help you sir?” the girl replied.
“I was wondering if Dr. Chan was available, Im one of her patients Robert Fong.”
Tracy looked up and expected to see a distraught guy, instead she found him clean cut and nice looking. “Sure, please have a seat, Dr. Chan is with a patient right now, she’ll be out soon.”
He nodded politely as he took the seat one space away from Tracy, he gave her a quick glance and smiled warmly. “Are you waiting for Dr. Chan too?” She nodded in reply but didn’t speak. She was still shy when it came to strangers and most of all men.
“Judy, has Mr. Chu arrived yet?” a voice appeared from around the corner of the hallway.
“No, Dr. Cheung. Not yet.” The receptionist replied.
“Okay, let me know when he does.” Marc was a bit disappointed. His patient was already 1 hour late for the meeting. He turned around and found two people sitting in the waiting area. “Hi there.” He smiled warmly “Did you need to talk to someone?” he was eager to start a session.
Tracy shook her head shyly “No, Im waiting for Dr. Chan.” Her grasp around the flowers tightened nervously.
Robert also shook his head “Im the same.”
“Well, let me know if you guys need anything. Im down the hall.” He pointed to his office. The two nodded politely.
The receptionist smiled at the two “He didn’t mean to be pushy, he’s a new doctor here and he just wants to help.” She explained.
“I understand.” Robert smiled.
After a few more minutes, the door to Virginia’s office swung open and out came a patient. “You can go in now.” The receptionist said.
Robert turned to Tracy “You go ahead first.”
She shook her head shyly “No, I just wanted to drop off the flowers, you can go first.”
He smiled “I guess we had the same idea.” He pulled out a wrapped gift that he brought for Virginia. “Lets go in together.” He offered. She nodded in reply and got up, he put out a hand for her to go first. “After you.” He was a pure gentleman.
“Well, this is a nice welcome!” Virginia said happily as she stood up and greeted Tracy and Robert with a warm hug. “How are you two doing? You know each other?” she asked with curiosity.
“No, we just met outside. Im sorry, I didn’t introduce myself, Im Robert but everyone calls me Robby.” He brought out a welcoming hand as she shook it lightly.
“Tracy.” Her eyes glued to the ground.
“Sweetie, eyes up.” Virginia said as she pushed Tracy’s chin up. “You still need practice.” She smiled “Is that for me?” she pointed to the beautiful pink roses.”
Tracy blushed “Yes, it is. I almost forgot about them.” She handed Virginia the flowers.
“This is for you too.” Robert handed her the perfectly wrapped box.
“Oh, you guys are too sweet.” Virginia gushed a she tore the wrapping apart and revealed a square shaped leather box. When she opened it, she gasp at the beautiful silver watch inside “How did you know my watch was broken?!” she asked.
“I noticed it the last time I saw you…” he trailed off, not wanting to reveal too much to the new person.
Virginia glanced over to Tracy and returned back to Robert “Yes. I do remember. That’s very thoughtful of you. You’ve got quite an eye for perception.” Her eyes suddenly brightened “Oh, I almost forgot, I’ve got a gift for both of you.” She smiled a she reached into her drawers and pulled out two small boxes. She opened them to check which one goes to whom. “This is for you.” She handed one to Tracy and then the other one to Robert.
“You didn’t have to.” Tracy said with a huge grin that deceived her words.
“I wanted to.” Virginia said firmly, she waited anxiously for them to open their gifts. “You like it?” she asked.
Tracy practically had tears in her eyes “Its beautiful.” It was a silver cross on a silver chain “Is that engrave wording?” she asked. Virginia nodded with a wide grin.
“Mine too.” Robert said as he examined it “May you find the strength to go on.” He read out loud. “My initials are on here too!” He exclaimed. “What does yours say?” he asked Tracy as he tried to put on the chain.
“Find me in your heart.” Tracy had tears in her eyes now as she smiled “Thank you.” When she turned back to Robert, she noticed that he was trying unsuccessfully to put on the chain. “Here, let me help.” She said as she took the chain from his hand and put it on easily.
“Thank you.” He said.
Virginia looked from one person to the other. She felt a strange bond growing between them. “Tracy have you found a place to stay yet?” she knew Tracy lived in the shelter home and recently found a job. She also knew that Robert was one of the richer people in Hong Kong but due to her promise she couldn’t reveal his identity.
Tracy shook her head “Not yet. Im still at the shelter home.” She didn’t sound as sad.
“You’re staying in a shelter home?” Robert looked surprised “That’s no place for a girl like you.”
“I have no money and I just found a job. I won’t be able to afford an apartment until a few months later.” She explained “But its okay, at least Im on my own two feet.”
“That long?” he asked, his face filled with genuine concern for the stranger “Can you do secretarial work?” she nodded “Well, I’ll make a few phone calls.” He said slyly.
Virginia smiled as she watched the barrier being pulled down from Tracy as she smiled “Thank you, but I don’t want to bother you.”
“Its no bother at all. Anyways, looks like we’re on the same boat. Dr. Chan always said it’ll make you feel better by helping others, right?” he turned to Virginia for a split second before turning back to the simple beauty next to him.
“Thank you.” Tracy said as she smiled warmly. “Thank you very much Dr. Chan.”
Virginia looked confused “What did I do? You two met all on your own and Robby offered to help, not me.” She shook her head unwilling to take the gratitude.
“But if it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t have met.” Robert said matter of factly.
“Suit yourself. You know, I would love more than anything to stay and chat but unfortunately, I must go back to work.” She pointed to the patients waiting outside.
“Oh Im sorry, that’s so inconsiderate.” Robert apologized as he got up. “Come on, I’ll take you to lunch and I’ll tell you about the job.”
Tracy nodded eagerly as she got up “I’ll give you a call sometime, Dr. Chan.”
“Call me Ginny from now on. You two are no longer my patients.” She smiled proudly at how well they progressed from their depressed stage. The smile stayed on her face even when they left her office.
Chapter 9
Virginia Chan – Vivian Leung
Jeremy aka Remy Hung – Julian Cheung
Marc Cheung – Gallen Lo
Late that afternoon, Virginia was typing up some notes when she heard loud bangings coming from outside her tiny office. After a while she decided to go outside to see the commotion. She saw people moving furniture down the hall from her suite. Then she remembered that Jeremy told her that his department was moving to the third floor.
“Dr. Chan, I think that’s our new neighbors.” The receptionist advised.
“They’re quit noisy don’t you think?” Marc commented from behind her.
She turned around and gave him a slight nod “I haven’t seen you this whole morning, have you been busy?”
He smiled “ I believe you were the busy bee. You want to go to lunch?” he offered.
“Is it that time again?” she asked while she took a glance at her watch “Wow, time sure flies by when you’re having fun.” She joked.
He chuckled. “So how about it?”
She was about to answer when a voice called out to her “Ginny!”
Virginia turned around and smiled at the person approaching her “Hi Remy. I didn’t know you were moving today.”
He was out of breath as he nodded “Yeah…we decided to do it a littler earlier. How about lunch?”
She turned to Marc who didn’t look too happy. “Why don’t the three of us go?” she offered.
Jeremy smiled “I don’t mind. How about you…”
“Dr. Marc Cheung.” He said.
“Oh another doctor. Nice to meet you.” He brought out a hand and Marc reluctantly shook it after noticing the dirty marks on his hand. “Oh Im sorry, I was moving my stuff. Well, let me tell the manager and I’ll be right back.” He said brightly.
Virginia covered a smile as she turned back to Marc “They’re social workers.” She explained “He’s in the teen abuse department.”
“I see. Oh, you know, I forgot about this appointment that I had. I have to go get my teeth cleaned. So maybe next time.” Marc said hastily as he rushed out the door.
Virginia watched as he disappeared down the hallway to the elevators. She wondered why he had a sudden change of plans? When Jeremy returned he was jumping with joy inside because Dr. Marc Cheung wasn’t there. He already had a bad impression on the guy. The two had a peaceful lunch at a nearby food court where they decided on sub sandwiches. She reserved a seat while he ordered.
“Club sandwich on white for you and a lemonade.” He announced as he released the tray onto the table and began unwrapping his own sandwich.
“What did you have?” she arched her neck to see what he had.
“Turkey sandwich with everything.” He announced as he took a huge bite of the sandwich.
She couldn’t finish the whole six inch so she saved the other half for later while he finished the entire sandwich. “You guys sure can eat.” She commented.
He looked up “You guys?”
“You and your friend, Jeff.” She searched his face to see any responses. She only sensed a bit of disappointment.
“You two went out before?”
Virginia nodded “Last Sunday, we went out for sushi.” She didn’t go into details.
He only nodded quietly “You had fun?” he asked, he didn’t want to ask her too much but he was dying to know how she felt about him.
She gave a slight shrug “Like any friends would have.” She noticed his face brightened with a smile so she quickly added “Just like me and you right now.”
He continued to smile, hiding his disappointment under his smile “Jeff is a fun guy you know, despite his profession.”
Virginia nodded “Yes, I know. So are you!” she added “Looks like we all pretty much have the same life.”
“I guess you can say that. But I admire what you do. I think its psychological but when people know you have a degree, they tend to listen more. As for me? Those teenagers ignore me when I lecture.”
She tilted her head thoughtfully “That’s the key word, lecture. I don’t agree that having a degree makes people more opted to listen to you. Why don’t you try to talk to them instead of telling them something is wrong. I can guarantee you that they know that its wrong, but they just want to do it. I think teenagers are harder to talk to just because they don’t have quite an mature understanding for life.”
“But you know a lot of adults don’t either.” He added.
She nodded “True. But at least they are willing to listen. I’ve personally never had a patient younger than the age of 21. But I don’t think they’ll like to hear me ramble on about how great life is. Because they go through this emotional, resentful stage where they just don’t want to listen to anyone but themselves or their friends.”
He smiled “Not necessarily. I’ve been talking to this little girl who’s around 16, she listens to me and not her parents. She’s told me how they always punish her for something stupid. Like being on the phone or internet, but she claims that she’s only on for about an hour. Well, it turns out that she’s failing most of her classes and her parents don’t know how to deal with her because her other brother and sisters did very well in high school.”
Virginia shook her head “I think she listens to what you have to say is because she thinks you understand. Or maybe she doesn’t have enough attention from her parents so she looks for it through being a ‘bad’ girl so they would punish her.”
“Is that what they teach you in college?” he teased.
She laughed “Not really, this is through my own knowledge from being a teenager myself. I was an orphan and was raised in a family with four other siblings. I didn’t understand why my adopted parents chose me since they had four other kids to begin with. Needless to say, I fought hard for the attention, of course at that time, I didn’t know that I was doing it all wrong. Everyone needs a parent’s or an authority figure to give them love an attention. Some kids choose doing wrong things and some kids choose to do well in school so they get a good response. It all has to do with this…” she pointed to the brain.
“I think we take it for granted.” He commented. “You’re very informative.” He said with a smile. She was so easy to talk to and so open minded.
“That’s why people come to me for advice.” She joked.
“Does that mean I have to pay a fee?” his eyes wide making his face look ten years younger.
She laughed “The first one’s always free.” She looked at her watch “Well, time to get back to work.”
“Already?” he whined as he pushed himself out of the chair. Before they split up in the hallway between her suite and his new suite, he asked her “Ginny, we’re having a barbeque this weekend at the beach, are you interested in coming?”
She paused for a few seconds “Maybe, let me look at my schedule and I’ll give you a call.”
He nodded with a smile “Sure.” The split up and returned to work.
SIU BING LIBRARY