Flash Fiction #32
On a late Saturday morning, I stood leaning on a grocery cart waiting for the butcher to hand me the meat that I asked him to cut up for me. I peered down on the small piece of paper with the list of groceries to get for dinner tonight and the rest of the week. After hearing the voice of a little girl beside me, I couldn't help but look to my side to see her and her mother.
"Mommy," she said while pulling on her mom's purse to get her attention. "Mommy."
Her mom ignored her daughter's nagging since she was busy looking at the various of meat products, deciding what to get before asking the butcher for some help.
Judging by the way the young girl was acting, she couldn't be more than 9 years old. She only wanted to get her mom's attention since she was bored. I couldn't help but relate to being in that kind of situation when I was younger. Being dragged along with parents wherever they went, especially the grocery stores where I had no interest in aside from picking snacks which my parents never went down those aisles. It must be then that changed how I looked at them.
"Mom, can I get chips?" I asked, tugging on the bottom of her sleeve.
"Not now, David," said Mom, ignoring my question and looking at the produce on display.
"I'm bored. Let's play a game." I moved over to her other side and tugged on her other sleeve, pestering her.
She had said the same three words from earlier. "Not now, David. Be quiet, okay?"
I stopped tugging on her sleeve, frowning at the fact she was ignoring me. I stamped my right food showing my defiance. When she was ready to move on, she looked down at me and said, "Let's move on now. We'll play later after we get home."
"I want to play now!" I didn't move from my spot, screaming.
Mom looked around her and noticed in the vicinity that some people turned their heads to look at us. She said, "Now's not the time. When we get home, I'll treat you to your favourite snack."
"But I'm bored now, and you made me miss my favourite show that is going on right now!"
Mom glanced at the other grocery shoppers and gave a smile at the disturbance we were causing. I didn't care at the time by being inconvenient. I was selfish, and that was something I regretted after I matured years later.
"No means no, and we have to move on now!" She grabbed my hand and dragged me with the cart in her other hand. I made a big fuss and was crying and screaming. I thought I was doing it the whole time, but I was distracted by small things that seemed insignificant to adults. It was at that moment that I promised that if I had children, I would never ignore them like my mom did.
"Here you go, sir." The butcher handed me the meat in a bag with a label.
"Thank you." I turned back to look at him to take it, surprised.
As I was leaving, the mom and daughter was going to disappear in the sea of shoppers at the grocery store. By coincidence, I looked down to see that the little girl dropped a glove that was in her pocket and she didn't noticed it. I picked it up and tapped on her shoulder to get her attention. "You dropped this, here you go."
"Thank you." She nodded at me, taking it with both hands while leaning back frightened.
"What's going on?" her mother asked, looking down at both me and her daughter.
"It's nothing. Your daughter dropped this and I returned it to her." I stood up to look eye to eye at her mother.
Without saying another word to me, she looked down at her daughter and said before continuing on, "Let's go now. I'll treat you to ice cream afterwards."
After being ignored by her, I couldn't take it and said, "You do know that ignoring your child right now, she'll come to dislike you in the future, right? They may not understand everything, but take the time to explain."
She turned around and I could tell that she was annoyed. "And what is your business with what I do? What makes you qualify to take care of children more than me?"
I wasn't sure how to answer, and my face started to heat up and beads of sweat dropped down my face. After the silence, the mother added, "Why don't you and I just go on our separate lives?"
Just as she was about to turn around, I replied, "I don't know if I can be a good parent, but I know that I won't be like you. I'll make that perfect balance of being strict and fun."
Without a care in the world, they disappeared in the crowd, and everyone else passed me as if none of it mattered. I remembered that the little girl stared at me for as long as she could before the heights of the adults covered her view. To me, the small stuff mattered. In my head as a small consolation prize, I ran forward to find the mom and daughter, and grabbed the little girl's hand to whisk her away.
"Mommy," she said while pulling on her mom's purse to get her attention. "Mommy."
Her mom ignored her daughter's nagging since she was busy looking at the various of meat products, deciding what to get before asking the butcher for some help.
Judging by the way the young girl was acting, she couldn't be more than 9 years old. She only wanted to get her mom's attention since she was bored. I couldn't help but relate to being in that kind of situation when I was younger. Being dragged along with parents wherever they went, especially the grocery stores where I had no interest in aside from picking snacks which my parents never went down those aisles. It must be then that changed how I looked at them.
"Mom, can I get chips?" I asked, tugging on the bottom of her sleeve.
"Not now, David," said Mom, ignoring my question and looking at the produce on display.
"I'm bored. Let's play a game." I moved over to her other side and tugged on her other sleeve, pestering her.
She had said the same three words from earlier. "Not now, David. Be quiet, okay?"
I stopped tugging on her sleeve, frowning at the fact she was ignoring me. I stamped my right food showing my defiance. When she was ready to move on, she looked down at me and said, "Let's move on now. We'll play later after we get home."
"I want to play now!" I didn't move from my spot, screaming.
Mom looked around her and noticed in the vicinity that some people turned their heads to look at us. She said, "Now's not the time. When we get home, I'll treat you to your favourite snack."
"But I'm bored now, and you made me miss my favourite show that is going on right now!"
Mom glanced at the other grocery shoppers and gave a smile at the disturbance we were causing. I didn't care at the time by being inconvenient. I was selfish, and that was something I regretted after I matured years later.
"No means no, and we have to move on now!" She grabbed my hand and dragged me with the cart in her other hand. I made a big fuss and was crying and screaming. I thought I was doing it the whole time, but I was distracted by small things that seemed insignificant to adults. It was at that moment that I promised that if I had children, I would never ignore them like my mom did.
"Here you go, sir." The butcher handed me the meat in a bag with a label.
"Thank you." I turned back to look at him to take it, surprised.
As I was leaving, the mom and daughter was going to disappear in the sea of shoppers at the grocery store. By coincidence, I looked down to see that the little girl dropped a glove that was in her pocket and she didn't noticed it. I picked it up and tapped on her shoulder to get her attention. "You dropped this, here you go."
"Thank you." She nodded at me, taking it with both hands while leaning back frightened.
"What's going on?" her mother asked, looking down at both me and her daughter.
"It's nothing. Your daughter dropped this and I returned it to her." I stood up to look eye to eye at her mother.
Without saying another word to me, she looked down at her daughter and said before continuing on, "Let's go now. I'll treat you to ice cream afterwards."
After being ignored by her, I couldn't take it and said, "You do know that ignoring your child right now, she'll come to dislike you in the future, right? They may not understand everything, but take the time to explain."
She turned around and I could tell that she was annoyed. "And what is your business with what I do? What makes you qualify to take care of children more than me?"
I wasn't sure how to answer, and my face started to heat up and beads of sweat dropped down my face. After the silence, the mother added, "Why don't you and I just go on our separate lives?"
Just as she was about to turn around, I replied, "I don't know if I can be a good parent, but I know that I won't be like you. I'll make that perfect balance of being strict and fun."
Without a care in the world, they disappeared in the crowd, and everyone else passed me as if none of it mattered. I remembered that the little girl stared at me for as long as she could before the heights of the adults covered her view. To me, the small stuff mattered. In my head as a small consolation prize, I ran forward to find the mom and daughter, and grabbed the little girl's hand to whisk her away.
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