TEENAGE GHETTO

TEENAGE GHETTO
(A short story)
joynlazaro
1/28-29/07 11:00pm-1:00am
1/30/08 2:00- 3:30 pm

Demeanor! That's one of your problems Susan.

Trust me Rita; I don't care of what people may think of me!

I didn't raise you to think like that.

But you did raise me to think like them and more likely to think like you! I'm already 20 years old; I don't think I'll be facing more rude things than being treated like this!

I just want you to be safe.

Safe? You know Rita being safe is different from being caged; more likely safe is being in heaven while cage is living on hell.

Rita walked away as fast as she can and slam her door on Susan's face. Reluctant and scared.

(Kringgg...)Six o'clock alarm

Damn! Why do I need to work!?

Susan I got to get going, I made you some breakfast and coffee

Don't you know how to knock!?

Come on, I don't have time for this; I won't be able to pick you up on school later so you need to be home by sevn!

I am not a kid anymore Rita. I know what to do and I can handle myself.

I love you too honey.

(OH! I hate it overtime she do that!) Susan murmured.

Susan grew up in a upscale suburbia sprawl across the rolling hills of northern New Jersey, stretching as far as 70 miles from New York City, though known as one of the wealthiest suburbs in America opposite of it is Susan's. Susan grew up together with his mum and dad. It was until her parents divorced which took its toll on her. She loves her family and always wanted to have her family back like fourteen years ago. But she failed as her dad married her step-mum and her mom keeps on committing adultery.

Over speeding her bike towards Zhang Xuemei's Convenient store before she ran out so late, screeching sound of the break makes her stoop as she reaches out for the land.

I know I'm late. I'm sorry Mr. Zhang

You can't always do this Sue; you know how busy Sunday morning is. If you don't want to work anymore just quit or better else quit now!

Good morning too Mr. Zhang, I promise it won't happen again.

You go to work now, and don't pile the boxes high over five again!

Susan is a sweet lady, she just want to retaliate against her mom and dad for she always wanted to have a Family, to have a Mum and Dad she can call her own, though it's so hard for her to treat her mother like that, that's all she can think of in order for her parents to talk. She never calls her mother mom or her father dad since eight, she just calls them by their name.

Rita I'm home already.

Are you here?

Sue. (From a voice of a man)

Without hesitation she looks behind her knowing that voice she can't be wrong that it’s the voice of her dad Pierre.

Dad? I mean Pierre? What are you doing here?

Don't I deserve some welcoming Sue?

Are you kidding me? Of course! (She grabs her dad's hand and throws herself into his fathers’ side and tap the shoulder of a Forty-Seven year old man.) What’s up Pierre? Wow! It’s like two years since you give me a call, how's life going?

I'm sorry if I wasn't able to give you a call, because I thought you never wanted to talk to me anymore.

Don’t sweat; you know how I hate drama! (She answered immediate as if she doesn’t want to hear her father's next word again)

Of course you don’t, how silly of me. (Pierre change his look as he realize he’s about to cry)

So what brings you here? Have you talked to Rita already? (Gazing on her watch)

Yeah, this morning I called her and asked if I can come by and she agreed and said good cause she’ll be coming home late and...

(amazed as she looks like, Sue cut the next word of Pierre) we’ll I just got home and I don’t have anything to offer to you so just suit yourself, there’s some spuds left in fridge and uhhh some lazy macaroni, oven it and there you go, I am still full, I just had my ice cream on my way home so I’ll be fine until then.

Oh! Is that so? Well thank you but I brought us some pepperoni pizza and your favorite nacho flavored cheese don’t you wanna grab some while we’re having some chat? A tattle maybe? What can you say?

Uhhh sure, sure, I’m still not sleepy plus I don’t wanna be rude on you, just so you know.

So how you’ve been? I know its lame but how’s life been going to you and your mom?

Well nothing has changed. Well maybe did something but turned out to be worse so uhhh me and Rita keeps on arguing, I stopped going to school ‘cause Rita can’t support me anymore, education turns out to be expensive nowadays and I can’t afford to slack anymore so I already have a job two blocks away, I’m working so hard so I won’t be a pain in Rita’s ass anymore as she always cry.

That’s a lot, I am sorry our family didn’t worked out quiet well.

Oh my dear Pierre, that’s so sweet of you (Sue utter sarcastically) I know you guys have been busy cheating on each other since I was born and I know you guys didn’t even sweat to like fixed your mistakes and try to put all the blame to each other and you didn’t even think of my future. The future of your own child! Killing’ me every time I am trying to figure out what went wrong and only to find out that you guys are so pathetic! Sorry, but truth hurts!

Pierre stood so numb, He can’t speak a word because he knows that Sue is telling the truth, He soon realizes that he’s already crying.

I’ve never been a good Father, Husband and I’ve never been a human, I know that, forgive me Sue, I am still your father am I? So please forgive me. I know how hard things has been for you...

What do you think what I’m doing? I am trying to convince my self to agree with what both of you are saying, the only thing I can’t understand is did you guys ever loved each other? I just can’t see how two in-love people would turn out to be irate with each other concerning that you have a child. Can’t any of you show any meekness and eat your ego instead knowing that we guys are family and supposed family should bond together? What has happened to both of your sanity that you Pierre as I can remember even showing me your girl friend, trying to convince me that Lauren is my mother? And Rita even encouraged me to get mad at you? Didn’t it ever occur to you that one day I will hate you for what you have costs me? I was just a child? Don’t I deserve to be happy in such early age I have to travel from one City to another because both of you are pulling a restraining order on each other every time one of you has to pay me a visit? Does it ever occur to you that at least I have to go to the park once or twice a week? You know what? I really don’t wanna throw sentiments on my life because you know how I hate drama but you once again pull and trigger my silence. (She soon realizes that her eyes were already releasing warm fluid, and found herself thumping her father’s trunk)

As Sue cries her lungs out her father grabs and holds her close, both didn’t realize that all the while Rita has been listening to their daughter-to-father dialogue, soon Rita enters and conveys as well.

Never been a good mother and wife either. I’m sorry, I lack to a lot of things and I refuse corrections, I instead let my ego eat me and now it’s pay back time. I can’t blame you Sue for hating me so much, you have all the rights but I wanna say thank you also for you never let me down, though you always think that I disagree with you but you’re wrong, I trust in your judgment cause I know though your father and I haven’t been a good foundation for you but yet you always pull things together, you don’t know how proud I am, I may not be gaudy but I am so proud of you!(Rita tries to hold back but fails to do so, instead she cries and enfold Sue) I am so sorry.

Mom, Dad; the truth is, I really can’t get mad to both of you, ‘cause I know Life has it’s purpose and I dun wanna correct mistakes with another mistakes, I dun wanna put all the blame to you or to dad, you guys chose to be like this and commit mistakes but I’m so glad now that I have you both back, all I’m asking is a family, which I never had. And now that I have you here I won’t let go of you both anymore, let’s try to build a family of our own.

Sue cries and hold tight to her mum, she then felt a relief after long fourteen years, she now at least has something to look on her past, a fifteen second memory of a family she hasn’t felt for so long. She then felt liberation from painful past, from rage and from misery.

Life sometimes has to be harsh for our foundation to be deeper... Life isn’t offered in a silver platter; no body said it’ll be easy; but no matter how hard life may seems it won’t be that tough if you have someone to lean on, a family or friend maybe. Definitely your past will determine your future not unless you chose to be better then future will repay you…though things really are destined for us still we need to make choices no matter what choice we’ll be making we have to face a certain consequences, don’t be afraid, in life you need to do things that get you outside your comfort zone, if you don't then you'll never know. Sometimes we even stop ourselves from doing things that we want to do, even when you win or loose not knowing would be the biggest lost.