Page 7 of The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties

“You better eat that, Meddy!” She wags a finger in my face. “You too skinny. How you going to make a nice, fat baby if you so skinny?”

Her words act as a signal for the other aunties and uncles to swarm around me and pile food onto my plate, all of them telling me I need to eat more so I can give my poor, long-suffering mother the chubby grandbaby she deserves. By the time they’re done, I swear my plate weighs more than all of mycamera equipment combined. I stagger with it to the cousins table and slide into a seat next to Nathan.

“Thank you for saving me,” he murmurs, squeezing my hand.

“Ah, newlyweds,” Sarah sighs. “That was very selfless of you, Meddy.”

“Yeah, we told her to leave you to the wolves,” Jems laughs.

Next to our table, the “grown-up” table is in full party mode, all of the aunts and uncles cackling as they exchange crazy stories. Even Big Aunt is laughing uproariously at something Uncle Ong is saying. On the other side, the kids squeal and giggle at their little table. I can’t help smiling as I watch everyone, loving the noise and warmth that fills the entire house. It’s no wonder that Ma and the aunties make sure to come back every year. They seem younger here somehow, more vibrant and filled with life.

“I love this,” Nathan says, echoing my thoughts. “This is so lively. I can see how everyone living together under one roof really works for your families.”

Elsa laughs. “Oh, trust me, we get into our share of arguments. But yeah, on the whole, it’s really great, and the kids are never bored or lonely.”

“I’ve always wanted to be part of a big family.” Nathan’s dimples wink at me, and I smile back.

“Well, you’ll meet the big family tomorrow morning, on Chinese New Year.”

“The ‘big’ family?” Nathan says.

“Yeah, this isn’t the whole family, it’s only a small portion of it. Everyone else will come here in the morning to bai nian.” Bai nian, done during Chinese New Year, consists of goinground to relatives’ homes or congregating in the house of the oldest relative to wish everyone a happy new year.

Nathan’s eyebrows disappear into his hairline. “Whoa, this is only a small portion of the family?”

“Yep,” Sarah says through a mouthful of noodles. “There are about eighty of us in total.”

“What?”Nathan sputters.

Again, my stomach knots. Maybe it’s too much, too overwhelming. I shouldn’t have brought him here for Chinese New Year, the biggest holiday for our family. I should’ve brought him here on a normal day and had him meet everyone in a slow, manageable trickle.

But Nathan only beams wide, eyes alight, and says, “That’s amazing. I can’t wait to meet everyone.”

Honestly, I don’t deserve this man. I lean over and plant a chaste kiss on his cheek.

An insistent tinkling of metal against glass catches our attention, and we look over to the next table to see Fourth Aunt tapping her fork against her glass with flourish. Next to her, Ma is rolling her eyes, like,Of course she’s calling all of the attention to herself.

When Fourth Aunt is satisfied that all eyes are on her, she sets down her fork and places her hand on her hip. “I’d just like to say thank you to everyone for welcoming us home, and I amsoexcited about the Chinese New Year celebration tomorrow.”

“Hear, hear!” Jems calls out.

Ma rolls her eyes so hard I wonder if she’ll give herself a migraine.

Fourth Aunt’s fire-engine-red lips stretch into a playful smirk. “Aaand, I’ve prepared a very special surprise for tomorrow.”

Uh-oh. My stomach drops. I hate surprises. People often say they hate surprises, but see, the last time my mother and aunts surprised me, I killed that surprise, so when I say I hate surprises, I really mean it.

As though reading my mind, Fourth Aunt frowns and flaps her hand at me. “Meddy, I see that look of horror on your face. Don’t worry, it’s not a surprise for you, okay?”

“Oh.” Okay then. I sag with relief. Nathan squeezes my hand again, and I mouth “phew” at him.

“Who’s the surprise for?” someone calls out.

Fourth Aunt grins slyly before miming zipping her mouth shut. Everyone groans good-naturedly. I’m surprised Ma’s eyes are still working after all the rolling they’ve done. Dinner lasts for hours. By the time we finish up with dessert, the kids are all asleep, except for little Jeassyka, who’s still yammering on to Nathan about how she’s planning on using her red packet money to buy a real lightsaber for her Barbie. Somehow, against all odds, it seems that everything is going well, and I find myself looking forward to finding out what Fourth Aunt’s surprise istomorrow.

3

Crash! Bang!

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