“Take care of me?”
“We have our own expenses, Eileene. This house doesn’t maintain itself. Darren works hard, and we can’t keep supporting everyone else.”
I looked at Darren.
He was studying his steak.
“I’ve never borrowed a single dollar from either of you,” I said.
Thalia rolled her eyes.
“Support isn’t always a handout. Sometimes it’s a lifetime of little expenses.”
“Name one.”
She looked startled.
“Excuse me?”
“Name one expense you’ve paid for me.”
She turned toward Darren.
He didn’t speak.
I waited.
Finally, Thalia said, “You need to start taking responsibility for your own life.”
“I already do.”
“You could work as a greeter at Walmart. They hire older people. There’s no shame in honest work.”
“Of course there isn’t.”
“Then why not apply?”
I folded my napkin.
“Because I don’t need a job.”
Thalia laughed.
“That’s exactly the attitude I’m talking about.”
She slammed her hand on the table.
“Get a job, stop sponging off us, and quit acting like a leech!”
Water spilled across the white tablecloth.
Darren caught the glass before it fell.
Neither of them looked at me.
So I began to laugh.
Thalia stared.
