I slowly awoke from my long nap to the heavenly light scent of pork soup dumplings steaming downstairs. I could sleep for another lifetime but the smell was too overpowering. Mama and Auntie Helen agreed to make their signature dumplings for Thanksgiving, the raved delicacy at every holiday gathering.
Every dumpling was carefully made with love. It starts with chives taken right from our indoor garden to the best fatty pork from the asian supermarket. Every dough is chopped and rolled into mini, thin like paper, pieces of wrappers. To finish it off, each dumpling is sealed with a dab of water and a stamp of love. All of them await their dunk into the hot boiling bubbling water, and will be gobbled within seconds of serving. Voila! The Zhou & Zhu tradition, as Mama would call it.
I know the main reason they were running a dumpling factory this holiday was because David, Auntie Helen's son is coming back home for the first time since he left for university. He's flying all the way from CalTech in Pasadena, sunny California back to Denver, the place our moms chose to settle on. They knew they wanted to raise their future kiddies here, share holiday festivities, and go on long hiking trails as we got older. It was their way of maintaining the traditions their Nainai's and Yeye's brought while also creating new ones.
Ding Dong.
That has to be David. David was practically my brother from another mother. He was born a year earlier but we did everything together growing up since our moms were besties. I wonder if he changed much since this summer. David "coincidentally" looks really similar to me. Dark brown eyes. Black thick hair. Just a head taller than me. Our moms even dressed us in matching outfits until we were 7 & 8. I threw a huge fit and so they never dressed us up again.
"David!" Auntie Helen exclaims. Baba and Uncle Kenny went to pick up David from the Denver airport [DEN].
"Hi Mom! Hi Auntie Kate!" I hear a familiar voice.
I peek out of my door, and down the swirling staircase is him. He looks taller. Different hairstyle too. I only see his back but I can feel the familiarity.
I ran into my en suite bathroom, just doing a double check. No flyaways. No stuff in my teeth. Ready to go.
I slip out of my room and announce my presence with my semi-stomps down the staircase.
"Hi David! Long time no see"
David spins around and locks his eyes onto me.
YOU ARE READING
Invisible String
Teen FictionAngelene has always known David, their mothers were practically sisters. But what happens when Angelene goes off to college and crosses paths with David's best friend, James? James is the opposite of David, but what will Angelene choose? ...
