4. Tara's Anger

"Uncle, wake up, Uncle! Tara's here!" I whispered as I shook Uncle Vincent's muscular body. He was still partially awake, opening his eyes lazily. 

"What is it? Asking for more rounds?" Uncle Vincent asked. 

"What do you mean by 'more rounds’? Look, your beloved daughter is at the door!" 

"Tara?" 

"Yes, Tara! Do you have other daughters?" 

I started to feel annoyed with Uncle Vincent's retard-like habits when he woke up. I quickly got up and dragged Uncle Vincent's reluctant and sleepy body into the closet. 

"Don't go out! I—I will open the door for her." 

I quickly threw Uncle Vincent's pants and clothes into the closet and closed it tightly.

"Wear these!" 

"A moment please!" I yelled as I put on a red satin pajama that I picked from the closet. 

I hurriedly ran to the door to welcome Tara. I myself didn't know why Tara came straight to this place. Since she disappeared and took a break from college, she had never contacted me again. 

"Tara? Come in!" I opened the door wide for Tara. "Why didn't you message first? I'm not well prepared!" 

I tried to greet my dear friend with a smile. But it was different this time. Tara gave me a cold stare. 

"So, this is your new apartment?" Tara's comment was a response to my hospitality. "I heard that... you're now a sugar baby?" 

My heart stopped beating. "What do you mean? You disappeared for so long, and now you come back and—" 

"Jason told me that you suddenly broke up with him," Tara interrupted my words. 

"I did break up with him. That doesn't mean I became a sugar baby," I retorted. 

My heart was pounding irregularly. I signaled to myself that I couldn't admit any wrongdoing. I was not at fault. Her mom had cheated on her dad first. 

Tara laughed sarcastically. She approached my ear and whispered, "I was actually looking for my dad, but he wasn't home. Jason said to me, 'Try looking for him in Sasha's apartment.'"

My heart raced even faster. This was insane! How did Jason know all this? Was he following me? 

Tara distanced herself from me. She looked me up and down with a sardonic, disgusted expression, laughing in triumph. 

"Don't you want to see yourself in the mirror, my dear friend? Your face looks like a cat seeing a ghost right now." 

I wanted to retort to Tara's mockery, but I couldn't find my voice. Who could defend themselves when their rottenness was about to be exposed? 

"Okay! Now, I just have to find where my dad is hiding," Tara said confidently. She was a hundred percent sure that she would find her dad in my room.

"No, Tara! You're wrong! Your dad is not here!" I tried to convince Tara as my voice managed to force itself out again. 

However, Tara didn't listen to me. She searched the apartment, determined to find her dad no matter what. 

"You're living a good life, huh? Your fridge is filled with expensive healthy food! You need to keep your shape to seduce your sugar daddy, huh?" Tara exclaimed as she grabbed a cup of zero-calorie chocolate pudding from the fridge. 

She then looked at the cabinet where I placed my designer bags and shoes. "There's no way a beggar like you could have all these luxury items if you weren't a sugar baby!" 

"Tara, stop!" 

"I won't stop until I find my dad!" Tara yelled, laughing like a maniac as she slammed and rummaged through the pantry as if her dad’s burly body would fit there. 

She then approached the bathroom, forcefully opening the door. "Dad! Come out! Your cute daughter misses you a lot! Tara is back! I can't bear being homeless out there!" 

Tara entered the bathroom and opened the shower curtain as if she would find her dad there. To make matters worse, she opened the toilet seat as if her dad could fit in such a super small hole. 

"Tara! Stop it! Is your dad a toilet ghost or something?" I shouted. 

"If you can't find your dad anywhere, it means he's not here." 

However, Tara didn't listen to me. Her sharp eyes focused on one untouched place. The wardrobe! 

I ran, trying to prevent Tara from opening the door. But Tara was faster. She opened the wardrobe door, revealing her half-naked dad standing there. 

"You! Rotten old man!" she murmured. "So, this is what you meant by my dad not being here?" Tara turned to me with a murderous gaze. 

"You home-wrecker! You ruined my parents' marriage!" Tara harshly pulled my hair. 

"It hurts, Tara! It hurts!" 

"My heart hurts even more, you know!" Tara screamed, bringing her lips close to my ear, making my eardrums feel like they were about to burst. Her voice was piercing. 

"Stop, Tara! Stop!" Uncle Vincent shouted, trying to release me from Tara's torment. "You don't understand the whole situation!" 

"Dad! Are you defending her? She had an affair with someone else's husband, Dad! What else do you call her but a homewrecker?" Tara shouted again as Uncle Vincent managed to free himself from her grip on my hair. 

I cried by the side of the bed, witnessing the escalating fight between father and daughter. This was truly insane. Tara couldn't be controlled. 

"I never thought you would cheat with my own friend! How could you do that, Dad?" Tara ran out of my apartment.

Uncle Vincent, who didn't want to lose his daughter, ran after Tara, shouting, "Tara! Listen to my explanation! It's not what you think, sweetheart!" 

"Lies! What other excuses can you come up with?" 

That's all I heard. The rest was just indiscernible shouting. I was certain that the residents of the apartment would be furious. 

***

I don't know how long I stayed in bed. A day? Two days? Five days? I had no idea. 

Since leaving the apartment with Tara, Uncle Vincent never returned to even check on me. He didn't show up to make sure I was okay or not. As if he didn’t want to see if I was in a mess and despair. 

Until finally, I heard the doorbell ring. It must be him! Or so I thought.

I ran toward the door and at that moment, I felt utterly defeated because the one who came wasn't Uncle Vincent, but my mom. 

"M—Mom?" I asked, stuttering due to my stiff lips.