“Daddy! You really don’t have to make such a big deal out of this!” Minh Tuyet cried as she followed her dad around while he was making orders to maids where to put the arrangement of roses.
“What do you mean ‘don’t make a big deal’? This is your 22nd birthday, sweetie!” Tuan Ngoc said, tilting his head to the right to make sure a picture frame was straight.
“Daddy! Listen to me!”
“I know, I know, I know. The food isn’t ready, but Thuy Tien is doing her best with all the other cooks. Don’t worry, honey; everything will be okay,” Tuan Ngoc assured to his daughter.
“Daddy!” Minh Tuyet yelled. Tuan Ngoc stopped abruptly when his daughter pulled him by the arm, causing him to fall flat onto a chair.
“I don’t know how to say this … but, um. I decided to spend my birthday this year with my friends … outside the mansion,” Minh Tuyet looked at the wonderful roses on the desk beside her.
“Oh, but…I always thought you wanted to spend your birthdays in the mansion.”
Minh Tuyet wanted to apologize to her father but she didn’t want to see the look in his eyes. She really did feel bad, but she wanted to spend her birthday with her friends, especially Bang Kieu.
“I’m so sorry, father…” she said, her eyes still on the roses.
“It’s alright; I guess…I can just invite my own friends as a little party for myself. But you must be home before midnight so I can at least spend a couple of hours with my daughter on her birthday!”
“Thank you so much, Daddy! I love you! I love you!” Minh Tuyet hugged her father and ran to her room.
“So, there’ll only be five of us?” Tu Quyen asked when Minh Tuyet was back in her room.
“Yes, it’ll be fun! Don’t worry…they’re really nice people.”
“I’m really nervous! I haven’t hung out with…you know, um…”
“Peasants?”
“Yeah…sorry.”
“It’s alright! Trust me…once you hang out with them, you’ll forget all about your ‘high class’ life,” Minh Tuyet said proudly.
Tu Quyen and Minh Tuyet quietly knocked on the door of Duong Trieu Vu’s house. They walked in and Minh Tuyet saw a cake that had ‘Happy Birthday Tuyet!’ and was slightly bent. There were refreshments in the small living room, where there were a couple of wooden chairs with a little table beside it.
“This is so nice!” Minh Tuyet said, looking around the room with amazement.
“Who is this?” Van Quynh asked, pointing to Tu Quyen, who quietly stood next to Minh Tuyet.
“Oh! This is my cousin, Tu Quyen. Tu Quyen, this is Van Quynh, Duong Trieu Vu, and Bang Kieu,” Minh Tuyet introduced, as she points to each person in the house.
“Hi, nice to finally meet you!” Van Quynh said, shaking Tu Quyen’s hand.
“Hi! You might not know me, but I’m the guard of your building,” Duong Trieu Vu said, jumping in between Van Quynh and Tu Quyen.
“Oh, really?” Tu Quyen asked, trying to sound interested.
“Yeah! I’m the one that always says ‘Madame Quyen, your uncle would like for you to come to the family room’, and stuff like that.”
“Really? That’s great…”
Van Quynh stood beside them with her arms folded with her eyes rolling. She tapped on his shoulders and he turned around.
“Yes?” he asked.
“Um, wanna help me cut the cake?”
“Can’t you see I’m talking?”
“So talking to this woman here is more important than the meaning of this party?”
“No, I am not saying that, I’m trying to whip up a little conversation right here and you just rudely interrupted.”
“I tapped.”
“Just because you tapped, doesn’t mean you politely interrupted.”
“Does it really matter?”
“You know what? Thinking of it, there is no way to politely interrupt.”
“Exactly! So I wasn’t being rude…it was …um, neutral?
“How stupid…” Duong Trieu Vu turned around to find that Tu Quyen was talking to Bang Kieu and Minh Tuyet. He felt a grip on his shoulders and a force that turned him around.
“Did you just call me stupid?” Van Quynh asked with anger.
“So now you’re gonna blame me for being honest?”
“You know what? You are really something…what’s the word … ARROGANT!”
“What’re you talking about?”
“Ever since I met you, I knew you were really arrogant but still, I clenched my teeth and tried to be friends. But I guess this isn’t really gonna work out because you and your ego is always in the way!”
“What does this have to with my ego?”
“Ugh! I hate you!”
“Oh…I know what this is about. You’re jealous that I was talking to Tu Quyen.” By this time, everyone was quiet and was looking over at Duong Trieu Vu and Van Quynh.
“Jealous? Are you out of your mind?”
“I don’t know…YOU tell me!”
“You know what? Maybe I am jealous! Actually, I AM jealous! You happy?” Van Quynh cried with tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Wait, wait, wait. Van Quynh, what’re you talking about?”
“I hate you! I thought you were someone different! I thought you’d finally understand how I feel about you by now! But of course, you can’t see anything! Your ego is in the way!”
Van Quynh hastily ran out the door and accidentally tripped over a log. Duong Trieu Vu ran after her but she was nowhere to be seen by the time he got to the door.
“This was not how I imagined today would be…” Minh Tuyet said, her eyes filled with disappointment as she fell down to the wooden chair.
“What do you mean ‘don’t make a big deal’? This is your 22nd birthday, sweetie!” Tuan Ngoc said, tilting his head to the right to make sure a picture frame was straight.
“Daddy! Listen to me!”
“I know, I know, I know. The food isn’t ready, but Thuy Tien is doing her best with all the other cooks. Don’t worry, honey; everything will be okay,” Tuan Ngoc assured to his daughter.
“Daddy!” Minh Tuyet yelled. Tuan Ngoc stopped abruptly when his daughter pulled him by the arm, causing him to fall flat onto a chair.
“I don’t know how to say this … but, um. I decided to spend my birthday this year with my friends … outside the mansion,” Minh Tuyet looked at the wonderful roses on the desk beside her.
“Oh, but…I always thought you wanted to spend your birthdays in the mansion.”
Minh Tuyet wanted to apologize to her father but she didn’t want to see the look in his eyes. She really did feel bad, but she wanted to spend her birthday with her friends, especially Bang Kieu.
“I’m so sorry, father…” she said, her eyes still on the roses.
“It’s alright; I guess…I can just invite my own friends as a little party for myself. But you must be home before midnight so I can at least spend a couple of hours with my daughter on her birthday!”
“Thank you so much, Daddy! I love you! I love you!” Minh Tuyet hugged her father and ran to her room.
“So, there’ll only be five of us?” Tu Quyen asked when Minh Tuyet was back in her room.
“Yes, it’ll be fun! Don’t worry…they’re really nice people.”
“I’m really nervous! I haven’t hung out with…you know, um…”
“Peasants?”
“Yeah…sorry.”
“It’s alright! Trust me…once you hang out with them, you’ll forget all about your ‘high class’ life,” Minh Tuyet said proudly.
Tu Quyen and Minh Tuyet quietly knocked on the door of Duong Trieu Vu’s house. They walked in and Minh Tuyet saw a cake that had ‘Happy Birthday Tuyet!’ and was slightly bent. There were refreshments in the small living room, where there were a couple of wooden chairs with a little table beside it.
“This is so nice!” Minh Tuyet said, looking around the room with amazement.
“Who is this?” Van Quynh asked, pointing to Tu Quyen, who quietly stood next to Minh Tuyet.
“Oh! This is my cousin, Tu Quyen. Tu Quyen, this is Van Quynh, Duong Trieu Vu, and Bang Kieu,” Minh Tuyet introduced, as she points to each person in the house.
“Hi, nice to finally meet you!” Van Quynh said, shaking Tu Quyen’s hand.
“Hi! You might not know me, but I’m the guard of your building,” Duong Trieu Vu said, jumping in between Van Quynh and Tu Quyen.
“Oh, really?” Tu Quyen asked, trying to sound interested.
“Yeah! I’m the one that always says ‘Madame Quyen, your uncle would like for you to come to the family room’, and stuff like that.”
“Really? That’s great…”
Van Quynh stood beside them with her arms folded with her eyes rolling. She tapped on his shoulders and he turned around.
“Yes?” he asked.
“Um, wanna help me cut the cake?”
“Can’t you see I’m talking?”
“So talking to this woman here is more important than the meaning of this party?”
“No, I am not saying that, I’m trying to whip up a little conversation right here and you just rudely interrupted.”
“I tapped.”
“Just because you tapped, doesn’t mean you politely interrupted.”
“Does it really matter?”
“You know what? Thinking of it, there is no way to politely interrupt.”
“Exactly! So I wasn’t being rude…it was …um, neutral?
“How stupid…” Duong Trieu Vu turned around to find that Tu Quyen was talking to Bang Kieu and Minh Tuyet. He felt a grip on his shoulders and a force that turned him around.
“Did you just call me stupid?” Van Quynh asked with anger.
“So now you’re gonna blame me for being honest?”
“You know what? You are really something…what’s the word … ARROGANT!”
“What’re you talking about?”
“Ever since I met you, I knew you were really arrogant but still, I clenched my teeth and tried to be friends. But I guess this isn’t really gonna work out because you and your ego is always in the way!”
“What does this have to with my ego?”
“Ugh! I hate you!”
“Oh…I know what this is about. You’re jealous that I was talking to Tu Quyen.” By this time, everyone was quiet and was looking over at Duong Trieu Vu and Van Quynh.
“Jealous? Are you out of your mind?”
“I don’t know…YOU tell me!”
“You know what? Maybe I am jealous! Actually, I AM jealous! You happy?” Van Quynh cried with tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Wait, wait, wait. Van Quynh, what’re you talking about?”
“I hate you! I thought you were someone different! I thought you’d finally understand how I feel about you by now! But of course, you can’t see anything! Your ego is in the way!”
Van Quynh hastily ran out the door and accidentally tripped over a log. Duong Trieu Vu ran after her but she was nowhere to be seen by the time he got to the door.
“This was not how I imagined today would be…” Minh Tuyet said, her eyes filled with disappointment as she fell down to the wooden chair.
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