Thank you for telling me to have a good day, I am trying my best!
My parents left for West Virginia for the weekend, off to sightsee and pick peaches with work acquaintances, leaving me home alone. In that solitude, I found peace, some of the most tranquil days I have had in a while. The first day drifted in a pleasant haze, as I spent it reading, sleeping, browsing the internet, and chipping away at my homework (my senior year of highschool had just started). As night fell, I chatted with friends and played online games. There was a sense of liberation in the quiet of that day. The second day, I stumbled upon an old Sony Walkman, EX811, which must have been bought back when my parents used to live in Japan. I had to bike to the hardware store to buy screws to fix the Walkman. Albeit frustrating, I tinkered with the relic till it worked. It was very satisfying. Unfortunately, the only cassettes I have are the ones my parents used to learn English. Hopefully I can buy some classical music for me to listen to.
I suppose my joy was short lasted. I heard the garage door open, as my parents had just arrived. I went downstairs to greet my mother, but I didn’t dare exchange glances with my father. My father slapped my cat because he had puked on the carpet; I felt helpless to watch. I asked my mother if I could go hiking over the Labor Day weekend, as it has been months since I had last, and they screamed back. They shouted about my sat, my gpa, and other statistics I couldn’t bother to remember. I don’t understand, I tried my best, I did fine, and yet they demand more. Sometimes I wonder if they see me past my results, I’m sure they do, but it's hard to remember that when their love feels like a blade. I have trained myself to think rationally, to remind myself that this is just how they show they care, that they have their best interests at heart. But as I retreated to my room, their voices still echoing through the house, I felt their words cut deep. My motivation to work on the Walkman drained away, leaving a familiar pain.