The World of Angy Wong

Polarity

In a dark restaurant that also had a movie rental section, there were three rows of tables and chairs in the middle and the video racks were located on the right side of the room. I was standing in the middle row of tables with a group of women who were lined up directly facing a string of men. Each person had a silver platter of miscellaneous food items. Mine was filled with fruit. I stared at the man across from me who had blue eyes, spiky blonde hair and an amicable demeanor. He smiled at me and said that we were paired up, but for what it was still unclear. The lines dispersed as the couples all went their separate ways except for me and my partner – he was pondering which direction to go in while I stood there awkwardly, waiting for his lead.

Suddenly, a bright flaming object near the the middle of the first row of tables erupted into a huge explosion. I ducked under the table in front of me as panic engulfs the room. People were crying and screaming as disorder ensues. The fire went out quickly though the front section of the room was in ruins and the front window was completely shattered. I was still hiding under the table unsure of what to do. I wanted to leave but I overheard others murmuring that the local Israeli mob boss was coming.

I started looking for my partner again and I see him escorting two young children and their grandparents towards an exit by the video section. I followed them and was surprised to find that the exit led to a brightly lit and extended hallway. At the end of the hallway, there was a room with the door opened. I walked towards it and the closer I got, the more I heard. My partner was accusing the young boy with the big brown eyes and the shaggy brown hair who did not look older than 9 years old of causing the explosion. Immediately, I quickened my pace and entered the room. The grandparents looked completely oblivious to the accusations and their granddaughter of about 4 years old was hugging her grandma tightly. The boy just stood there with wide eyes and remained speechless. I asked my partner – who’s eyes no longer held the friendliness it initially did upon our first meeting just fifteen minutes ago – what was going on.

He stated matter-of-factly, “This kid here is guilty of causing that explosion.”

“That’s impossible. He’s a child and they were sitting at the table on the other side of the room when it happened.” I noted.

“Well, there’s proof that his mother sent him to do it.” He said and whipped out a polaroid of a woman in her thirties in a mug shot pose.

“Certainly you can’t blame the child for his mother’s actions.” I reasoned, and I could tell that he was conflicted with what he was ordered to do and what he thought was rational.

“Think clearly for a moment.” I prodded and took a step towards him. He was silent for a few minutes but immediately snapped out of his reverie and said, “I am going to slit their throats. You can stay or you can go.”

Horror overcame me but I knew he was serious. He was a soldier and this was his order. After one last glance at the pitiable family, I ran out of the room and down the hallway. About three people were walking towards me and I screamed, “You don’t want to go in there! He’s going to murder that family!” The three others quickly turned around and followed me. As soon as I stepped foot into the video store, a man with slicked black hair, dressed in a suit and holding a machine gun bursts through the front door. He had a pair of dark shades on and was smoking a cigar. He fired a round of shots and I immediately ducked for cover. This was the Israeli mob boss that people were whispering about earlier. While taking cover behind a video rack, I wished I had left right after the explosion instead of following my partner to the murder room.

“Get me all the good movies!” The man ordered and a fellow next to me quickly started grabbing movies off the shelf. I crept around the corner to one video stand away and started grabbing DVDs off the shelf.

“Don’t worry. Only some of you will die today.” The man said with a manic smile.

As I grabbed the videos, I could only hope that I was not going to be one of those that die but my fate seemed sealed. I knew I’d eventually have to hand him the videos as he had already took notice of me and I imagined that once the exchange was made, he would shoot me right there on the spot. I remember my last thoughts were, “please don’t kill me”, as I stood up with five movies in my hand, made eye contact with the sociopath and held my breath.

I’ve been going through a quarter-life crisis recently. It began when my 16-year-old brother asked me what requirements he needed for admission into the Faculty of Science at UBC. Then, I found out that he will be learning to drive and the goal is to get his license in three months time. That’s when I knew I was getting old. I’ve always associated my brothers as being forever young but to know that one of them is approaching the age of legality made me feel like an old woman.

I should have seen it coming though. I mean, all the girls on Top Model are usually at least four years younger than me – even though they look about five years older. So, what has gotten me so frazzled about being in my mid-twenties?

I’m not entirely sure what I want to do with my life. When I was younger, I had always thought I would do something great with my life. I had a destiny and I was meant to help people, though I never figured out through what means. Now, the ideals are fading and I’m left feeling rather confused and lost about what I want.

Grad School? Research? Work? Government? Travel?

I really don’t know at this point. I can barely figure out what restaurant I want to patronize let alone what I want to do with my life. What’s the solution then? That I don’t know as well. Perhaps I’ll take Stewart’s advice and just begin to write – maybe then something will come to me even if it’s just that my writing sucks.