Picture Bride by C. Fong Hsiung

Author:C. Fong Hsiung
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction
Publisher: TSAR Publication
Published: 2014-10-20T04:00:00+00:00

·14·

“You have a letter from India,” Wendy says as I walk through the door. She has come home before me since I had to detour to the post office to buy stamps. Her hands tug at the plastic covering on the head of an iceberg lettuce.

I approach the envelope on the table with some trepidation. There was one only yesterday. Both would have been written around the same time. What could that mean? I don’t think I can handle any more bad news.

I glance at the writing—large, firm, but untidy. If there’s one thing Shane’s teachers complain about, it’s his messy scribble. I think their criticisms are unfounded, since I can easily decipher the tall, slanted scrawl. I tear the envelope at the edge, pull out the sheets, and quickly scan the contents. We write in English to each other.

When I look up, Wendy is watching me with an anxious expression. I smile and tell her, “Mama asked Shane to write to me because she wants us to stay in touch. Unlike Papa, she still wants to hear from me, but we have to keep this a secret from him.” I glance at the letter again. “Shane has given me his friend’s address in central Calcutta where I can send letters to the family.”

It's the best news I’ve had from home. My sense of rejection lifts like a dark cloud, shedding light on my newfound hopes that Papa’s rejection of me will be temporary. Mama will work on him until she wears him down without him realizing what she’s done. I resolve not to worsen my lot with him.

Wendy resumes tearing the lettuce leaves. “I’m so happy for you. A mother never gives up on her child.” Her voice breaks. She's thinking of Linda, her daughter who ran away from home and died of an overdose.

I drop my letter on the table, close the short space between us in a few strides, and wrap my arms around her waist. One cheek pressed on her broad back, I tell her, “You are the best mother in the world, and you have been like one to me, but more than that, you are my best friend.”

She turns around to face me. “I’m glad we found each other,” she says.

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