“Liam, apologize to my mother now!”
Liam stiffened his neck. “Apologize for what? What did I say wrong?”
The air turned heavy with silence for a long time.
His mother tugged at Liam’s arm, "It’s okay Liam. What’s the point of you two arguing on this beautiful day?"
She turned to my mother, gave a fake smile and pulled something out of her small bag and shoved it into my mother's hand.
“Please don’t take it to your heart, dear in-law,” she said sweetly. “Liam just has a bit of a temper. Look, he didn’t forget about you at all, he even brought you a souvenir.”
She shoved something into my mom’s hands. It was a cheap wooden comb, the kind sold three for $2 at the entrance of the scenic spot. The carving was crude and even had very sharp edges.
My mother froze, staring at the comb in her hand, not knowing whether to take it or not.
“Oh, come on, dear in-law, just take it. Don’t be shy. This is also a gift from Liam. My son may have his faults, but he’s actually a nice boy, you also know it.”
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, her tone shifted. Her fingers instinctively brushed her neck and pride instantly lit up her face.
“Look,” she said, deliberately straightening her silk scarf to reveal the gold necklace glittering around her neck. “He even bought me a gift too!”
She tilted her chin slightly, saying with full of satisfaction, “He told me I look best in gold, so he dragged me into the jewelry store just now to buy this necklace!”
She let out a theatrical sigh, still smiling. “Ah, it cost tens of thousands! I told him not to waste money, but this boy just wouldn’t listen! He said because it’s National Day and he has to make me happy!”
My mom stood silently beside me, her smile frozen in place. The sharp contrast between that cheap wooden comb and the gold necklace felt like a loud slap across my face. And that slap woke me up completely.
Fine.
For them, everything was about money and calculation, then let’s start counting properly. Including the dignity they owed my mom, I’d make sure they paid it back in full.
I took the wooden comb from my mom’s hand, running my fingers lightly over its rough splinters and suddenly gave a soft laugh.
“Liam, you really picked the perfect gift.”
He didn’t catch the irony in my tone. Instead, he smiled with relief, thinking I had finally given in.
“See? That’s better! Now everyone’s happy.”