Chapter 5:
Now that June was settled at school, teachers stopped noticing her. Instead of "our new student", she was just June, which made her very happy. Shing Hwa, on the other hand, stayed at home all day with nothing to do. Obviously, June knew about this. She decided to do something about it.
"You want me to what?!" Soda half-asked, half-screamed at dinner.
"It's not that hard, Soda," June said. "I just wanted to know if you could take Shing Hwa to work with you for a few days."
"I don't think that's possible, June," Soda replied. "I work at a gas station."
"She could run the cash register."
"June, she doesn't speak English." June looked at her friend.
"Yes she does," she said. "I've been teaching her." Soda looked doubtfully at the Chinese girl, who seemed so small at the table.
"Can you read?" he asked her.
"Uhh…" she let her eyes wander. "No." Soda turned back to June.
"She can't work the register if she can't read."
"But—"
"No." June sighed and the meal continued in silence.
June and I walked to school again the next day. June was still upset about the previous night's occurrences. She clutched her books and stared at the ground, obviously avoiding my eyes as I examined her.
"What is it about you?" I asked, almost subconsciously.
"What do you mean?" she answered.
"You know you're the underdog, you know they detest you, but you do it anyway."
"What's that supposed to mean?" she said.
"You will stop at nothing to make sure Shing Hwa gets what she needs. Heck, I bet you'd even give up a kidney for her!"
"You're kidding, right?" She looked at me with a joking-disgusted expression on her face. I laughed.
"Yeah. But what is it between you and her? How does a young Chinese girl end up here?"
She sighed. "Shing Hwa was on her own for a long time. Her parents sent her overseas with a nanny for no apparent reason at the time. She lived next door to me, and moved in when her nanny died. I'm the only one that's ever understood her. So when Mom and Dad died, I was the only one left with her. And I really don't want her to lose anyone else. She's too shy and weak to take care of herself, and we both know it. Sometimes it just takes a little force."
I understood. They clung to each other because they're all they've got.
"You know," I said, "We're your family now, which means you're not alone. Shing Hwa is just as much a part of our messed-up little gang as you and I are." She smiled and we reached the school.