Chapter 2

Daddy raised his voice when Mommy did not respond. “I’m talking to you! Are you deaf?

“Do you have any idea how much you embarrassed me by slapping me in public that day?!

“You’re the reason your son is so useless! He’s a boy, yet he’s weaker than Jenny’s daughter!”

He then stood up and walked toward my room. “I’ll raise my son from now on. At this rate, you’ll ruin him for life!”

Mommy stood in his way, her face twisted into a sarcastic smile. “So you do remember that Kenny is your son. You keep calling my son, my son. I was starting to think I was his only parent. But it doesn’t matter anymore. Let’s get divorced.”

Daddy snorted at the divorce agreement she handed him. “Are you crazy? You begged me to marry you. And now you want to divorce me unilaterally too?”

Mommy sighed, looking exhausted. “That’s right. You never loved me or Kenny, so let’s stop torturing each other. Once you sign this agreement, you can live happily ever after with your long-lost love. What are you waiting for?”

Daddy shoved Mommy’s hand away, making her stumble from the sheer force of momentum.

“You really are crazy! You barged into her house first. Jenny let it slide, but what you did was technically trespassing! Your son is just as rude and pathetic as you are. All I did was make him stand outside for a bit, but he acted like he was dying!

“And now you’re humoring his tantrums by threatening a divorce?! What are you thinking?”

Mommy was so mad her voice started to tremble. “What am I thinking? I should ask you that! Don’t you know Kenny was allergic to cherries?

“The first time he ate them as a kid, he broke into rashes and couldn’t breathe because his throat swelled up! There was a cherry hidden in that cake. What’s wrong with him spitting it out?

“I barged in to save my son! Was I wrong? If… If Jenny hadn’t stopped me, Kenny might have…”

Mommy’s voice trailed off, and her tears started flowing again. I really wanted to hug her and comfort her, just like I used to.

Daddy just snorted at her, looking down on her as always. “Don’t be stupid. It’s just a cherry, what’s the worst that could happen? He’s allergic to cherries? You might as well say he’s allergic to air!

“How come I never knew about his allergies? You used him to bind me by your side, so I’m sure you would have told me about it if it was true. You’re such an accomplished liar, after all!

“Other kids don’t have allergies. You’re just spoiling your son as usual! I’ll fix him today if it’s the last thing I do.

“Bah, all you ever do is weep and cry! You’re acting like your son died!”

With that, Daddy ran to the fridge in the kitchen and took out the box of cherries he had bought two days ago, before heading to my room.

Mommy looked at him and shook her head, sitting wordlessly on the couch.

Aunt Jenny loved cherries. Every time Daddy came back from her place, he would bring home a box. It was apparently Aunt Jenny’s gift to us.

Mommy would leave them in the fridge until they rotted away, then she would throw them away.

Every time Daddy caught her in the act, he would accuse her of being ungrateful. Every time, Mommy would tell him I was allergic, but he never believed her.

Once, he even tried to force me to drink a cup of cherry juice while Mommy was away from home, raving, “Your mother keeps saying you’re allergic to cherries, but I don’t believe a thing she says. She’s just saying it to spite Jenny!”

In the end, I burst into tears and bit him as hard as I could. Only then did he let me go, tossing me onto the floor and giving me a few kicks for good measure before storming out of the house.

The cherry juice spilled all over the floor and even dyed my clothes red.