Chapter 28 – Poverty

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John Rick loved money with all his heart. He grew up in money, and money gave him everything. Sometimes, he even felt that he could live by money alone – he didn’t need a tint of sustenance. The bloods that ran through his veins were coins and banknotes.

Nonetheless, money was his problem as well. Living in a suburban in his early days, renting a small apartment that didn’t seem to resemble an apartment.

“A hut.”

Poor life. His parents divorced because of it while his sister prostituted herself. This damnable life was something he wanted to escape from the moment he was born.

“I’m thankful to Emanuel. He’s such a fool.” He puffed on his cig for one last time and threw the small stub out of the car’s window.

“Why, Tito?” A girl in a ponytail swung her two legs back and forth while humming. Her feet dangled above the floor. John Rick gave her a wide smile after hearing her calling him Tito. After all, this girl’s background was terrifying and if he could leave a good expression on her then he was basically set on City Q.

“He is my classmate. Cough. We are not the same age because I repeated this a few times before. He’s smart but not so smart. Anyone can take advantage of him.”

“A pushover.” The girl smiled sweetly but John Rick thought he saw a flash of wickedness from her little face. He shook his head to clear his imagination.

“Young Miss, remember this. It’s not wrong for someone to help you. The more help they give, the better. It’s also not wrong to turn a blind eye to others. People and feelings are just a piece of baggage. Especially, you will carry the name of your father. The more you help, the lesser your power. The more people help you, the more you have.”

“In other words, become selfish.” The girl bared her white teeth giving John Rick a chill down his spine. He glimpsed at the inner devil hiding in her childish appearance. The car went quiet.

…

Lilia came back to her house only to find her mother gasping for breath. She was dying. But the former looked at her with a cold gaze. Lilia became indifferent to such a scene a long time ago. Truth be told, she already hoped for her mother to pass away. By then, she didn’t have to take care of her anymore.

“You made me worry, Lilia.” Her mother tried to stand up to face her but she was too sick that she stumbled on her bed. “Why are you not home for a couple of days?”

Hearing that, Lilia’s face changed, and dropped the old pot. She scrambled to pick it up while screaming at her mother to mind her business! The girl shivered uncontrollably. She was enveloped by a mountain of despair! Several men took turns to play her little body. She didn’t even know what was happening. Never in her imagination thought she could survive those days. She only knew that she wanted live!

“Lilia! Listen to me, daughter! Cough.” A shadow suddenly appeared behind her. Lilia got flustered but the figure held her in its embrace. “My daughter, just help mom for the time being, okay? You just have to bear a little more. When mom is finally okay, you don’t have to work anymore.”

Lilia felt disgusted. Just how much longer did she need to endure for her? She slapped her mother’s hand. “I don’t want to live like this.”

“Me neither. But we don’t have a choice.”

“You have a choice, Mom! You could have begged father to stay! But you chase him away! I also have a choice! And I choose you!”

Her mother smiled. “I know. And I thank you for that. So, Iha, please, wait for mom. I’ll recover soon.”

“When?” A tumultuous wave brewed inside the girl’s chest. But her face was calm as the ocean. Her mother didn’t feel anything and was thinking hard about how to convince her.

“Not for long.”

“You’ve been in that bed for as long as I can remember.” Lilia rummaged amongst the utensils. Soon, she finally got hold of what she wanted.

“When the father is still here, what are you doing?”

“I’m doing my best.” Her mother violently coughed and leaned on the door with a pale face. But she continued to speak with a soothing voice.

“Your best isn’t good enough. After your father went away, you can’t bring enough money at home. You even have to get sick and make it hard for me.”

“I also wanted to live, Lilia. I wanted to live for you. For us.”

“No. There’s no us anymore.” Pshk. Plunging the object onto her mother’s chest, Lilia gripped it while tears poured down on her face. Yes, she felt sadness, and yet, beneath it was the relief from getting rid of the burden on her shoulders.

“L-Lilia?”

“You are too selfish, Mom. Father didn’t do anything. He was forced to do anything just for us. But you can’t see it because you only see your feelings. If it’s hard for you, then it’s hard for us.”

Her mother suddenly clutched her arms. The strong grip made Lilia flinch but her mother held her and stared right through her eyes.

“Yeah, he slept with someone to earn money. He did other despicable things to put food on the table. But I’ll never tolerate those things even for such reasons!”

“Lilia! We are poor! We are just cockroaches to the unforgiving society! But we can’t let that define us! I’m sick but I longed for the light at the end of the tunnel! I wanted you to understand that we may die poor but we lived with dignity!”

“My… cough. My daughter…” She could sense the feebleness of her mother like a tiny ember on verge of being snuffed in any second. “I’ll be… watching you… cough… live…”

Creak. A long while later, the door of the dilapidated house opened. Lilia exited like a lost soul. She unexpectedly bumped into a neighbor.

“What happened to you child?” The auntie saw a smidge of blood on her clothes and her expression changed. “What’s wrong? Did you get hurt?”

Lilia shook her head.

“Hays. This child. Let’s go to the hospital. Don’t worry about your mother, I’ll help you with the expenses. You two are already miserable.”

“Look at you, you are really too mature! My child can’t compare to you!”

Lilia remained lost and allowed the woman to drag her. The latter scanned her body but she didn’t see any wounds. But to be safe, she still strode toward the nearest clinic.

“I envy your mother! She always talked about how she’s so proud of you! She said if not for her, you can have an easier life! You can do everything on your own and you are also intelligent. You never let her worry for a second. She said you are the sole reason she can stand with dignity. Hey, where are you going?”

The auntie scratched her head in worry while watching the girl bolting with her head below her shoulders.

…