A Love Story (Flash Fiction #104)

Image by homecare119 from Pixabay

Tiger’s wife is divorcing him and Tiger is crushed. The worst part of it is that he didn’t even see it coming. He’s kicked out of the house and now he has to move in with his friend Pan and Pan’s wife Pammy, staying at their spare bedroom.

Pammy is cleaning up the kitchen after dinner while Tiger and Pan move to the living room to watch ESPN. Pan comes to the kitchen and grabs two bottles of beer from the fridge.

“Don’t drink too much beer, Pan. You belly is starting to protrude.” Pammy says.

“Stop that, Pammy. Tiger is very depressed. He needs all the support he can get.” Pan replies, holding firmly onto the neck of the beer bottles as if they are going to slip away.

“So Tiger should drink, and why do you have to drink? I mean your wife is not running away.” Pammy says.

“Very funny, Pammy.” Pan says. “Tiger can’t drink alone. That will make him more depressed.”

“Ever since Tiger came, you really have found your excuse for drinking more.” Pammy says.

“Be sympathetic, will you? Tiger is broken-hearted. I hate to see him like this. He’s losing his spirit. Men have to endure so much, especially Asian men in America. We suffer the most.” Pan says.

“I think it’s the Asian women who suffer the most.” Pammy says.

“Yeah? Tiger’s wife Tria is enjoying herself right now. She suffers not. She has the house, the kid, and her lover living with her, while Tiger is cast away like a bag of garbage.” Pan says.

“Tria and Tiger belongs to a rare case. Most of the time, it’s the middle aged husbands who run away with younger women when they go back to Asia for a visit. Remember Jai, Tsang, Mung? Just enumerate a few.” Pammy says.

“That’s exactly what I am saying. Asian men suffer a lot of disappointed love in America. Too much disappointment and too many broken hearts. There are not enough chance to meet more women here. You know, being minority and immigrant and everything.” Pan says.

“Well, still I think Asian women suffer more.” Pammy says.

“Remember Loi’s son? He dates a girl in college, but the girl insists on attending graduate school in the West Coast after college. He thinks it’s just the girl’s excuse for breaking up. Remember Tarr’s girlfriend, who dumped him for her colleague. Girls get attention from men of other ethnic groups and girls just dump you to go for fresh blood. Tiger’s case too. His wife Tria is a typical example.” Pan says.

“Those don’t count.” Pammy says.

“What do you mean those don’t count? Of course they count.” Pan says.

“Those are men who can’t handle modern women of their own group, who can’t handle me-too movement. They just say to themselves, ‘let me try submissive Asian women who will cook and clean no matter what.’ Always, the most conservative men in this world would consider Asian women. That’s exactly what I am saying–Asian women have the worst. Yes, the naive Asian women get the worst of them all.” Pammy says.

“Naive? Are you calling yourself naive? You have used all your sophisticated coaxing to transform a free man like me to practically a slave now. You are far away from being naive…” Pan says.

“What are you arguing?” Tiger emerges. “I heard you arguing. I hope I am not troubling you too much.” Tiger is tired and his appearance is like ten years older than what he looked like one month ago.

Pammy says something polite while Pan and Tiger return to the living room. Tiger and his wife Tria were high school sweethearts. According to Tiger, girls fought hard for his attention in those days, but Tiger’s mom really liked Tria out of five girls Tiger brought back home. For one thing, Tria is hardworking to a savage level–she often works until she hardly has an ounce of strength left in her. She didn’t talk much, but she cleaned up the whole place the first time she came to visit Tiger’s mom. And she could also cook. She’s the big sister to two brothers and she started cooking family meals when she’s in primary school. Tiger’s mom thought this girl must be more suitable than other girls. Tiger is very gifted academically, but he is very lazy in doing chores or even just moving his limbs for PE classes.

(The second part of the story is here.)