Tournament Trouble

by Sylv Chiang

  Before Ty can think of a comeback there’s another Bam! from the window, followed by a loud, “Son of a . . . Borg.”

  The class snickers.

  Mr. Efram steps down from the chair, shaking his left hand and wincing. “Well, it took all my superpowers, but at least I got that blasted window open.” He tries to laugh, but what comes out sounds pained.

  “In light of the temperature in this room, and the fact that I probably can’t write on the board now, today I think we will focus on the last problem-solving step.” Mr. Efram notices Ty standing by my desk.

  “Tyrell, remind us what that is.”

  “Uh . . .” Ty looks at me. After a long pause, I roll my eyes and point to the poster on the wall.

  “The last step is . . . uh . . . reflect?”

  “Indeed.” Mr. Efram walks back to his desk, collapses into his chair in front of the fan, and starts massaging his left thumb with his right one. “Take this period to reflect on a question of your choice.”

  I fall into my usual booth at the back of the diner and drop my head on the cool ceramic table. It’s Friday. No point working on homework. I’ve got all weekend for that.

  There’s a light tap on my head, and I look up to see Roy grinning down at me. “What’s the matter, kid? Thought you’d be all excited about tomorrow.”

  “It’s not happening. I got found out.”

  Roy sits down across from me, and I quietly tell him about the meeting with Mr. Efram.

  “So, the teacher said you should compete and your mom still said you can’t go?”

  “Well, she didn’t exactly say I can’t go, but obviously . . .”

  “What did she say, exactly?”

  I think for a bit. “Actually, we haven’t talked since the meeting with Mr. E. I guess she’s not talking to me, or I’m not talking to her, or whatever.”

  The cook rings the bell for an order pick-up.

  “Man, if I were you I’d be all over her today, begging for a chance to go. You’ve got an endorsement from a teacher, bro. That’s gotta count for something. You really want this, right?”

  “Yeah, but . . .”

  “You gotta fight for what you want in life, like you fight in your game. You’d never give up this easy in a battle.” Roy heads for the kitchen.

  Ten minutes later, Mom walks by. She puts a bowl of ice cream on the table as she passes. I take a deep breath and call after her, “Mom?”

  She turns and walks back to me.

  I hesitate. I look down and see my thumbs tapping. To stop them, I slide them under my legs. Cali’s advice from the night before rings in my ears. Man, this is harder than Kaigo’s Super. “Dui bu chi.”

  Her eyes widen. I don’t know if she is more surprised that I apologized or that I spoke in Mandarin.

  Strangely, it feels easier than saying sorry in English, so I continue in Mandarin. “I wasn’t trying to be bad. It’s just that everyone I know plays these games. And I’m really good at them.” I pause to check for signs of angry bull, then continue. “I’m not a little kid anymore.”

  “I know you are growing up, but you are not that old yet.”

  “C’mon, Mom, even my teacher said there’s nothing wrong with gaming. Studies show gaming actually helps kids with concentration and reasoning, which is great for problem solving in math.” I read that online last night.

  She sighs. “This game is very violent, er zi.”

  “I have to go to the tournament. The prize is two thousand dollars.”

  “Why does a twelve-year-old need so much money?”

  “If I win, I’m going to give the money to Cali’s family for a wheelchair ramp. That way, Mrs. Chen can come home and Cali won’t have to move to Montreal.”

  Mom bites her lip. “You are a good friend.”

  I catch a glimpse of Roy over Mom’s shoulder. His dish towel is draped around his neck and he’s hopping from side to side, shadow boxing.

  It’s now or never. “Please can I go to the tournament?”

  Mom cringes. “I don’t think that is a good environment for you.”

  Roy shakes his head and mimes an uppercut.

  I can only think of one last possible move. I hope I’m not going to regret this. “What if you come with me? That way you can see what it’s like.”

  Mom scrunches her eyebrows and mouth. Not angry bull, more like thinking bull.

  “If you don’t like it, we’ll leave. I promise. I just want a chance to try.”

  After a long pause, she gives a tiny nod. “That’s a fair plan.”

  I smile, and Roy raises his arms in victory, then quickly drops them when Mom gets up from the booth.

  Aaah! I’m actually going to T3!

  Wait . . . Aaah! I haven’t played all week!

  Chapter 19

  That evening, I want to play Cross Ups and practice the Super that defeated Kn1ght_Rage, but my parents are home. Even though Mom agreed to let me go to the tournament, she didn’t say I could play the game whenever I want. I don’t want to push my luck by asking.

  I turn on the laptop and scan the Cross Ups forums for tips on playing against Blaze. I want to figure out why I kept taking damage in that match against Kn1ght_Rage. One comment says that Blaze’s Solar Burst Super has to be blocked from a crouch in certain situations. No wonder Kaigo kept taking the punishment! Too bad there are no tips to help me pull off Kaigo’s Dragon Fire Super.

  I think about watching some of Yuudai Sato’s old matches for inspiration, but I don’t think Mom will like that.

  I head to Melanie’s room to make fun of the music she’s playing. She’s painting Cali’s nails, so I decide to hold on to my insult for next time.

  “Having a little sister beats having brothers.” Melanie is focused on Cali’s hand. “You know, I’ve tried to do Jaden’s nails a million times, but he always runs away.”

  “Ever try when he was sleeping?” Cali smiles at me.

  Melanie looks up. “Good idea. Wanna help me tonight? Wouldn’t he look great with hot-pink nails for his big tournament?”

  “Ha, ha. I’ll go now. I didn’t mean to interrupt while you were practicing your future profession.”

  “Actually, we’re done.” Melanie closes the bottle of midnight-blue polish. “So, Mom and Dad are going with you tomorrow. Good luck with that.” She gets up, places the bottle on her dresser, and starts brushing her hair.

  Cali waves her hands around and blows on her nails. “That’s cool they’re coming to watch.”

  Melanie snickers.

  “Mom only agreed to let me go if she can come along to check things out. Now it’s both of them. Man, I hope Dad doesn’t do anything lame.”

  “Your dad’s not lame.”

  Melanie snorts. Just then, headlights from the street flash three times through the window. “That’s Roy. See ya.” Melanie waves out the window, grabs a lipstick, and rushes off.

  “Don’t you remember last year’s school play?” I ask Cali. “I had one line, and after I said it, my dad stood up and clapped.”

  “Oh yeah. That was cute.”

  “Cute? Try embarrassing. Then this year I tried out for football and my dad came to watch. Turns out I suck at football. I get out from the very bottom of a huge pileup and my dad yells, ‘You’ll get ’em next time, son.’ The grade eights laughed their butts off. Kept saying, ‘You can do it, son,’ and crap like that.”

  Cali doesn’t laugh like I thought she would. “At least your dad comes to your stuff. Mine has never been to any of my things.”

  Ugh. I’m such a scrub.

  Cali’s dad is coming tonight, so she’s finally taking the packing seriously. Too seriously.

  “Can you help me get this thing closed?” Cali presses on the top of the suitcase, but the two sides are still very far apart.

&nb
sp; It’s cooling off outside, and I sit by the window catching the breeze. “Not gonna happen. That thing looks like a python trying to swallow an elephant.”

  “But I need it all.” She grabs my arm and tugs me to my feet. “Please. If we both push, it’ll close.”

  “There’s no way . . .” I notice her eyes are glistening. “Unless we sit on it.”

  I help her climb on top of the teetering pile, and the lid sinks down a bit. Then I step up on the bed and place one knee next to hers. The top drops some more. Slowly, like a circus performer climbing onto the top of a pyramid, I bring my other knee up beside the first. The lid goes down to within an inch of the bottom.

  “We need to wiggle it down,” Cali says.

  “I don’t—”

  Before I get my sentence out, Cali starts bopping up and down. Not ready for the action, I slide forward. Cali grabs me, and the next thing I know we’re both lying on the floor.

  “You okay?” Cali’s tears are tears of laughter now.

  “Yeah. Sorry.”

  “It’s okay. It was my stupid idea to bounce.”

  I start giggling. “You should have seen the look on your face just before we fell.”

  “You should have seen the look on yours!”

  “Why don’t you just get a second suitcase?”

  She stops laughing. “I don’t want to go.”

  “If I win tomorrow and use the money to buy your mom a wheelchair ramp, do you think they’ll let you stay?”

  “Aww, you’re so sweet.”

  Sweet? What does that mean? I know what Hugh and Devesh would say. I look into Cali’s eyes, wondering if maybe my friends are onto something.

  She gets up and rummages through her closet. She finds a duffel bag and starts throwing the overflow clothing into it.

  I get up and stand next to her. “We’ll email.”

  “Yeah.” She sniffs.

  I start to reach for some clothes, then think better of it. What if I accidentally grab her underwear or something? I say, “And we can play online.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “And talk on the phone.”

  She stops and turns to me. She looks like she’s going to crumple. Instinctively, I hug her. She smells good—like vanilla ice cream. What do I say? I think about what my mom would say and go with that. “It’s going to be okay. You’ll be back before you know it.”

  The doorbell rings. I let go.

  Cali wipes her eyes, and I follow her down the stairs in silence. She sighs and pulls the big door open.

  A Chinese couple stands on the porch. I recognize the short, skinny man as Cali’s father, but not the roundish woman next to him. The woman’s lips are pressed together, and her head bobs from side to side like she is silently humming along to music.

  “Cali, open up.”

  Cali unlocks the screen door. The short, hefty woman grabs the handle and pulls it open, stepping on my foot as she pushes past us. Cali’s dad calls after her, “It’s down the hall on the left.”

  Her father steps in and gives Cali a one-armed hug and a pat on the head. “So, you all packed?”

  Cali looks down the hall where the woman disappeared. “Who is that?”

  “That is Marnie.” Cali’s father smiles a smile that makes his cheekbones stick out. There’s a long pause, and for a second I wonder if he is going to say anything else. “She, uh . . . hmm . . . well, I guess you’d say she’s my girlfriend.” His cheekbones stick out more. “Sounds strange, though, when you’re my age.”

  Cali stares at her father, mouth open.

  “I thought it would be nice to bring her along so you two can get to know each other a bit on the way back to Montreal. Kind of like a road trip. That way, you’ll feel more comfortable when we all get home.”

  I watch Cali’s eyebrows disappear under her bangs. “All?” she asks.

  The toilet flushes.

  Her father clears his throat. “Marnie and I have been sharing a house for about a month now. You’re going to like it. It’s a lot bigger than my old apartment.”

  The bathroom door opens, and Marnie walks, much slower this time, back to join us in the crowded entryway.

  “You must be Cali.” The woman gives Cali a hug that is not returned. “And you? Richard only told me about one child to pick up.” She launches into fake laughter.

  “I’m Jaden. I live next door.”

  “Oooh, the boy next door,” she sings. “Many a good romance novel starts with the boy next door.” She double winks at Cali’s father.

  My cheeks get hot.

  Cali’s father holds up his keys. “I’ll go and get our things.”

  Marnie says, “Once we’re settled, we’re going to take you out for a fancy dinner to celebrate.” She gives a tiny clap.

  “Celebrate what?” Cali asks.

  “Why, celebrate you moving in with us, of course. I’m so excited! I don’t have any children of my own—yet.”

  Cali stares at me, her eyebrows still lost somewhere high up on her forehead. Is this woman for real?

  Mr. Chen struggles to get a suitcase up the steep front steps. I hold the screen door open for him.

  Cali blinks rapidly as her father trudges past her. He’s halfway up the stairs before she finally speaks up. “Where are you taking that?”

  He rests the case on a step. “We’re going to use the master bedroom, since it’s empty.”

  “Yeah, nice of Mom to make space for you.” Cali brushes past me out the door I’m still holding.

  “Don’t be too long. Our reservations are in an hour,” Marnie calls after her.

  Chapter 20

  The next morning, I wake up before my alarm.

  It’s tournament day!

  I shower, dress, and head down to the kitchen to join Mom at the breakfast table. Dad took Josh to baseball practice, and Melanie’s still sleeping. It’s both strange and comforting to be alone with Mom. I crunch my cereal while she drinks tea, her green bracelet sliding up her wrist whenever she takes a sip. I wonder what she was like when she was my age in Taiwan. What happened with her brother back then? It must have been bad if she’s still freaked out about it now.

  There’s a knock at the door. Mom answers it.

  I hear a man’s muffled voice, then she calls to me, “Er zi, have you seen Cali this morning?”

  “No.” I go to the door.

  Cali’s father peers into our house. “She was gone when we got up this morning. Can you believe she left without saying anything? Didn’t her mother teach her any responsibility?”

  What a jerk. Cali’s been taking care of her sick mom—that’s responsibility!

  I guess he doesn’t speak Mandarin, because my mom answers him in English. “Maybe she say good-bye to her friends.”

  “Well, we’ve been waiting for an hour already. Who are her friends? Where do they live?”

  Kaigo’s fire rises in my throat.

  Mr. Chen steps across the porch and calls into Cali’s house. “Marnie, come on. Let’s drive around the neighborhood and look for her.”

  “She has friends on Palmer Street,” Mom says. “I show you.” She goes to get her shoes.

  Cali’s father paces the porch. “What’s the matter with that girl? She knows we want to leave this morning.”

  I can’t take this guy any more. How dare he be mad at Cali when he’s the one messing up her life? I slip out onto the porch, check that Mom is out of earshot, and whisper-yell, “What’s the matter with her? Sir, are you serious? Her mom is sick. She has to move away to live with a dad who doesn’t even know who her friends are . . .”

  Mr. Chen stops pacing and stares at me.

  “Then you show up with a surprise, live-in girlfriend. The question isn’t what’s wrong with her, it’s what’s wrong with you!” I take a dee
p breath and look down at the floorboards. Oh my God, I can’t believe I just said that.

  He shoots laser death beams at me. “Do you know where she is or not?”

  Marnie steps out onto the porch. “Wait, Richard. You didn’t tell Cali about me? You told me she was excited to come to Montreal and live with us.”

  “I meant to tell her.”

  Still looking down, I see something move under the porch.

  “But you didn’t. Maybe we need to look at this through Cali’s eyes. She’s probably just a scared little girl who wants her mom. Ooh, maybe that’s where she went—to the hospital. What do you think, Jaden?”

  “Maybe,” I lie.

  Mom comes out the door.

  Marnie takes the keys from Cali’s father and locks the front door. “Linda, can you show us the way to Cali’s friends? If we don’t find her there we’ll try the hospital.”

  “Of course. Jaden, you stay here in case Cali come back.”

  When the three adults drive off in Mr. Chen’s blue car, I race down the steps and around the side of the porch. I lift the familiar board and duck into Spy Club.

  In the grayness, Cali sits on a tiny chair, her knees pulled up to her chin.

  “What’s going on?”

  “I don’t want to go.”

  “Okay . . . So what’s the plan?”

  She shrugs. “Hide under the porch till they leave.”

  “Um . . . is there a backup plan, like for when they call the police?”

  She sniffs. “No.”

  “Alright then.” I walk, hunched over, to the chair next to Cali. Have these things gotten smaller? I sit and put my feet up on the little desk.

  In the days of Spy Club, we sometimes sat here for hours without talking so we wouldn’t give ourselves away. We got pretty good at communicating with only our eyes and hand signals.

  I look down at my hands. For once my thumbs are calm. I only wish there was a cheat I could input to improve Mrs. Chen’s Health Meter.

  Cali breaks the silence. “Thanks for saying that to my dad just now.”