INT. HIGH SCHOOL HALLWAY - NOON

 

The looming halls filled with red, rusted lockers seemed to never end. Students and teachers were pacing around the halls and stairways. It’s incredibly loud as they all chat amongst themselves and are hurrying to whatever destination they’re trying to reach. Some are laughing and talking loudly, while others are sulking with their heads down and nervously navigating the school.

 

PAULA scratched her head, yawning with a look of disdain.

 

PAULA

(mutters) I swear, I hate this place.

 

A voice from far away screams PAULA’s name as it slowly comes closer into vicinity at a worryingly fast pace.

 

JENNY

Pauuuuuuuuuulaaaaaaaaaaaa!

 

PAULA

(turns around and smiles) JENNY! How ARE you?

 

JENNY

Ugh, I’m doing so good. I missed you over Spring Break. 

 

PAULA

Me too! Break was hell when I had to spend its entirety with my MOM. 

 

JENNY

Your MOM? But, I love her. 

 

PAULA

You’re joking… She’s so unnecessarily mean all the time.

 

JENNY

But… (thinks back to flashback)

 

CUT TO FLASHBACK:

 

INT. LIVING ROOM - DAY

 

Two weeks prior to present time, PAULA hosted a practice debate at her home with JENNY, her debate partner, and two other teammates.

 

JENNY walks downstairs after the intense practice debate. The afternoon sun peeks in through the windows of the living room as she reaches the first floor. JENNY closes her eyes for a second and stretches as she slowly rolls her arm around, up and down, showing signs of tiredness.

 

MOM

JENNY! Oh, my dear, how are you doing? You look awfully exhausted.

 

JENNY

Oh, it was nothing! PAULA and I had a quick practice debate… I didn't prepare much, so I was just really stressed due to my lack of effort.

 

MOM

You should’ve told me. PAULA could’ve picked up on the slack! I would’ve told her to help you out. She’s so inconsiderate, isn’t she?

 

JENNY

No, no! Not at all. PAULA’s been incredibly supportive and helpful these past weeks, if anything I need to be upping my game.

 

MOM

No, JENNY, you’re so hardworking. Don’t ever put yourself down. If anything, PAULA needs to look at you as an example.

 

JENNY gloats a little, feeling somewhat proud of herself despite understanding that it was unfounded. The compliments were nice, regardless.

 

JENNY

You’re too nice. I really appreciate your kind words.

 

MOM

Of course! Now, let me fix up some snacks for you. Please eat as much as you can. PAULA’s been growing quite heavy these days from eating the snacks. Think of this snack session as helping PAULA out.

 

JENNY

Okay! Thank you so much!

 

CUT TO PRESENT:

 

The loud noises of the hallway seem to have been silenced in PAULA’s head. People were walking around and occasionally jostled PAULA. She moved as she was pushed, but didn’t react otherwise and had a blank face. PAULA’s face completely dropped. She didn’t know how to react – whether she felt tears in her eyes or was completely dumbfounded.

 

PAULA

I didn't even know this conversation happened! All my MOM did was berate me in front of you just so she could praise you… And that’s how you came to the conclusion that she was nice!?

 

JENNY

(shrugs) I don’t know. You sound awfully defensive right now. Maybe it’s not as unfounded as you’d like to think. Your mom seems genuine, anyway.

 

PAULA

I- Wow. I’m not sure what to even say. Weren’t we supposed to be the best of friends? You’d believe her words over mine?

 

JENNY

Gosh PAULA, you’re seriously overreacting right now. I don’t—

 

PAULA

No. Don’t talk to me. After the debate tournament this weekend, I don’t want to talk to you unless I have to.

 

PAULA storms off as she gently wipes the tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

CUT TO:

 

INT. LIVING ROOM – DAY

 

It’s the weekend after PAULA and JENNY had their fight at school. PAULA is home and descends from the stairs and walks into the living room. She spots MOM in her usual spot, seated comfortably on the brown sofa, fixated on her phone while the TV is blasting some Chinese news channel.

 

PAULA takes a deep breath and enters the living room.

 

PAULA

Good morning, MOM. (yawns)

 

MOM

(distracted) Look who decided to finally wake up.

 

PAULA

Are you kidding me? It’s only 11 AM. I had a long night yesterday with the debate tournament.

 

Glancing over at MOM to see her paying no attention whatsoever, PAULA sighed with a tinge of annoyance and poured herself a cup of water as she took a seat at the dining table.

 

MOM

Uh huh.

 

MOM dusts her legs off and rises from the sofa. Now that PAULA’s awake, she’s going to have a long day of lecturing, cooking, and catering to PAULA. MOM walks to the kitchen and pours herself a cup of tea.

 

PAULA

(sneaks a glance at MOM)Oh yeah, I–

 

PAULA quickly stops herself from speaking more, hesitating to tell MOM what she was about to say.

 

MOM

(raises her eyebrow) Hmm, so were you going to finish that sentence?

 

PAULA

(visibly stressed) Oh… I mean, it’s really nothing all that important. But… (smiles) I wanted to let you know that results for the previous debate tournament came out. Me and JENNY placed in the Top 5 of the teams.

 

PAULA smiled to herself, proud of her accomplishment. She, then, looked up at MOM, waiting for a reaction excitedly, though secretly knowing what to realistically expect.

 

MOM

Mmm… 

 

MOM swirls the cup of tea around, as she puts the cup down and starts cleaning the kitchen countertop with a rag.

 

MOM 

Top 5… And how many teams competed in total?

 

PAULA

(rolls eyes) 27 teams, MOM.

 

MOM

Okay, I’d expect for you to place in the Top 5 at the very least after spending so much time working on debate. How about we try to aim for something better next time? You shouldn’t get complacent.

 

All signs of happiness and pleasure disappeared from PAULA’s face. She picks her cup of water up and stands up.

 

PAULA

Is it really so hard for you to just say good job? I know it’s not first place or a huge accomplishment, but you know I worked hard for this. You don’t even know how hard it is to debate. You don’t get to keep criticizing me!

 

PAULA’s voice steadily rises as she continues exclaiming to MOM about how unfair she feels she’s being treated.Tears well out of her eyes, not out of sadness, but frustration.

 

MOM

(shocked) Don’t you raise your voice at me! I woke up early this morning to clean the house while even letting you sleep in. 

 

MOM couldn’t believe how PAULA just spoke to her. Her eyebrows wrinkled in confusion and anger.

 

PAULA

You’re unbelievable! Whatever. I knew I shouldn’t have told you!

 

PAULA stomps away from the living room with tears welling up in her eyes, holding her cup of water.

 

MOM

(hollers) Well, what do you want for lunch?

 

PAULA

(quiet, from far away) I’m not hungry!

 

A door from upstairs slams in the background as MOM frowns, slightly hurt from the previous interaction, and puts her cup of tea down as she looks in the direction of where PAULA went.

 

CUT TO:

INT. STUDY ROOM – NOON

 

The room is fairly clean, due to the constant clean-ups MOM conducts through the entire house. PAULA’s desk, however, has stacks of water bottles on the side along with 5 textbooks of various studies on the other end of the table. Most importantly, it’s quiet – silent and away from MOM’s lecturing as well as the TV that MOM always has on downstairs.

 

PAULA
(mutters to herself) I hate you. I hate you. Nothing is ever good enough for you. All-nighters, constant preparation for this tournament… 5th place is so good. You can’t even begin to understand the actual effort I put into this. 

 

PAULA throws herself into the office chair and huffs out a deep breath of air. She pulls her knees up to her face and buries her head in, downward. She sniffles a little, but holds her composure for the most part.

 

PAULA

Always going on about how her life is harder as an immigrant. She provides me with the opportunity of comfort and choices, but is now unhappy that I have this opportunity. I know it hasn’t been easy for her, but why does she get to use that to diminish my struggles?

 

The laptop screen shines brightly, as it shows the rankings of the debate tournament’s results. PAULA and her partner’s name are highlighted in bronze, showcasing their ranking of Top 5. 

 

PAULA

My name’s even in a different color due to my high rank. MOM probably doesn’t even know JENNY’s parents offered to take me out for lunch to celebrate. But everyone just loves little miss perfect JENNY for WHATEVER reason.

 

PAULA sprawls herself out and stares at the ceiling, dotted with a peculiar choice of painting style.

 

PAULA

Then again, MOM probably doesn’t care. She’d call them stupid or unnecessary, or whatever. I’ll never ever tell or share anything with her again. She’s so self-absorbed.

 

CUT TO:

INT. LIVING ROOM – NOON

 

MOM takes a deep breath as she tries to calm herself from the dispute. She presses on her back. The pain flares up whenever she’s stressed. She begins scouring the refrigerator for some fruits and snacks.

 

MOM

What a brat! Back in my days, I didn’t know when my next meal would be! Here, she has a mother that cooks for her, cleans for her, drives her everywhere, and it’s not enough???

 

MOM thinks out loud, as she contemplates what happened, and what could have gone differently to diffuse the situation.

 

MOM

Was I too harsh on her? She did put a lot of effort in, but fifth place just doesn’t seem like enough.

 

The difference in mindset between PAULA and MOM simply could not be resolved through reflection. Their different upbringings and beliefs instilled into them through their past decades of living will take years of dialogue and constant thinking to reverse.

 

MOM

Ungrateful girl. I gave up so much for her, yet she doesn’t understand. (shakes head)

 

Chopping noises fill up the originally silent kitchen. MOM starts cutting apples, oranges, and washes a variety of berries.

 

MOM

I’ll never get through to her. I still have so much to worry about. Does she really think a fifth place in debate will get her into college? Does she think something less than an ivy league will get her an ideal job in this environment? God, she just knows how to stress me out and push my buttons.

 

The monologue MOM has with herself somehow stresses herself out than the original dispute earlier. She finishes cutting the fruits and plates them in a bowl.

 

MOM

Well, she’s still my little girl. These fruits should help her feel a little better.