TEST DRIVE: A Night of Forbidden Desire

“That’s not being scared, that’s being realistic.”

“Hahaha!”

“Try using your brain for once.”

“Hahaha!”

“If you know it’s scary, why are you still watching?”

“Hahaha!”

“Watching is for entertainment.”

“Hahaha!”

“How can we be entertained if what we’re watching is scary?”

“Hahaha!”

At some point, the chicken leg that had been in Vonda’s hand found its way back to the table. A wise move, as the chicken thigh would probably have fallen onto the chair if Vonda had not put it down. She was laughing uncontrollably now, clutching her stomach. Every defense Max put up seemed to only increase her laughter.

“You’re going to choke on a chicken bone, just you wait.”

“Hahaha!”

Vonda tried to stop her laughter for a moment, but it was so hard. Especially when she saw Max’s flushed face. She was not sure if he was embarrassed or frightened by the movie “It” he had paused. Instead of stopping, she burst out laughing again.

“Vonda!” Max growled. “Are you trying to annoy me?”

Vonda struggled to control her laughter and finally succeeded, though occasional giggles still escaped.

“Me? Annoy you?” Vonda put on an innocent expression. “How come?”

Max frowned. “How can you not see that you’re annoying?”

Max knew Vonda was teasing him. It was really getting on his nerves.

“Anyway, just change the movie.”

Vonda shifted in her seat and showed a teasing expression that made Max’s stomach turn.

“You said before you didn’t care about the movie. The only thing you care about is these foods. Now that I’m playing ‘It,’ you suddenly want to change it?”

Max’s eyes widened, but it did not intimidate Vonda. In fact, it seemed to have the opposite effect. She found it even more amusing.

My stomach is really hurting from laughing so much. Hahaha!

“Not caring doesn’t mean you have to get a horror movie.”

Max’s hand pointed to the TV screen, which was showing a scene of Georgie Denbrough reaching into a storm drain, his paper boat being swept away by rainwater.

“Look at that, just look at that. Where’s the logic in that? Do parents let their kids play in the rain like that when it rains hard?”

“Hahaha!”

Enough. Vonda’s laughter exploded again. This only made Max frown more.

“That’s not logical, is it? And this kid, what is he thinking? There is a clown in the drain? It’s not logical. He should have found it strange.”

“Oh my God!” exclaimed Vonda.

Then, in the midst of the uncontrollable laughter, Vonda’s hand patted and tapped Max’s hand. Regardless of Max’s expression, or even her own at that moment, Vonda laughed.

“Max, he’s just a little kid. Don’t even expect him to think logically, he doesn’t even know what logical thinking is. Hahaha!”

Max snorted.

“That’s the job of parents, Von.” Max’s hand pointed at the TV screen again. “And that older brother of his, he’s grown up. Instead of keeping his little brother from playing in the rain, he even makes paper boats for him. Isn’t that stupid of the older brother?”

“Hahaha!”

Vonda’s eyes were moist from tears that had formed in the corners of her eyes. When she opened her eyes, Max’s face seemed blurry in her vision.Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

“Besides, the neighbor saw the kid bending over, but didn’t ask or anything, just looked. Really? Juss looked? Oh, my God. She really doesn’t care at all.”

“Max, come on.”

“No no no. You have to listen to me. This movie makes no sense. Why am I saying this? Because even when I was a kid, the neighbors used to scold me for playing too late at night.”

Vonda wiped away a tear and asked with difficulty, “Oh really?”

Max was still upset, but he answered Vonda’s question anyway. He nodded.

“They’d say things like, ‘Hey, difficult child. It’s past your bedtime. Go home now. Your parents will look everywhere if you go missing.'”

“Hahaha!”

“And if I didn’t come home, they would chase me until I ran home.”

Vonda burst into more laughter when she heard Max’s answer. For a while, Max seemed to let Vonda enjoy her laughter. He chose to remain silent, his mouth closed as he rested his chin on his chest.

“Your neighbors have a big mouth too, huh? How can they say that to a little kid? Hahaha!”

Max sighed. “What they said was actually true. From a very young age, I was often called a ‘difficult child,'” Max continued. “Because my parents had a hard time conceiving me. It took my mom years to conceive me.”

Vonda nodded in agreement. She remembered the conversation she and Riley had had the other day. She was not surprised at all when Max said that.

“My neighbors, on average, have mouths like firecrackers. That’s why my mom likes living there. Even now. Even though Mom doesn’t have a baby or a toddler grandchild, she still goes to the local health center every month. She volunteers there.”

“Hahaha!”

“Her words are like pinpoint fireworks. They hit the mark, but well… they’re not poisonous. They gossip the loudest about celebrities. But that’s probably because the celebrities themselves are willing to be gossiped about, right?”

“Hahaha!”

“Well, ever since I was little, I’ve been used to hearing those cruel comments. What can you do? When Mom is busy, it’s the ladies who help take care of me.”

Vonda’s laughter slowly turned to a smile this time. “So, you have a lot of moms?”

“Well, that’s absolutely true.”

Much like Vonda, Max’s face slowly transformed. From looking annoyed, he now appeared to be smiling.

“When I arrive home, I crack the car window open. From the entrance of the complex to my house, I’ll be called out. Hahaha.”

“Really?”

Max nodded. “Coming home, Max? Wow! The troublesome child is back! Max, do you still remember the way home?” He laughed. “Hahaha. And you know… it seems like all the women in the world want to have a child as mischievous as me. No wonder those mothers are fond of me.”

Vonda suddenly slammed her head back against the sofa, resting on its backrest with her hands on her stomach.

“Ugh!” Vonda groaned. “My stomach feels queasy. Like I’m about to throw up.”

*