Meme Response #50
Prompt: On what occasions do you lie?
Author(s): Paige
Character(s) Involved: Mala Singh and Papa Singh (NPC’d)
Word Count: 700
Trigger Warning(s): Parental disappointment
Summary: Mala really doesn’t like disappointing her father
“Papa! I met the most amazing boy today!” Mala lay on her bed, phone to her ear. Her father had called to check in on how she was faring at Academy but mainly checking in to see how her progress was going on finding a claim. Never mind the fact that she was only in her first year at Academy, her siblings had all found their claims quickly after entering Academy and had spent their years there growing together before graduating and entering into their claims. These same expectations were there for Mala, the youngest; the last to enter Academy.
“He’s sweet and patient and he is an incredible musician.” Mala found herself gushing, unable to contain her excitement. That excitement drained however, upon hearing the tone of her father’s voice. “And is that what this young man wants to do with his life? Play music? Do you know how many people are out there who think they can just sing a song and get instant fame, Mala? No. This young man doesn’t sound like he is the right fit for you, or our family.” Mala bit back the sadness that threatened to escape and she said a quick goodbye to her father. Of course, he was right, he was always right, but it didn’t make it hurt less.
Fast-forward her Academy years and that conversation had been repeated multiple times, always the same response and reaction. Her father constantly found something at fault with whom Mala chose and soon she had gotten a reputation for being difficult.
“She’s a sweet girl, but her standards…it must be a cultural thing.” The whispers followed her and soon she was graduating without a claim. With a program and a new set of friends on the horizon, Mala had a new hope that maybe this time she would be able to find her person, a person that made both her and her family happy.
“Mama. She is so nice! I think she really cares about me. She is a dancer too, so we have that in common.” Mala was 23 now and had been seeing a Domme for almost a year now as friends and they had just made things official and were working toward a claim when Mala told her parents, before a visitor’s weekend, about the young girl. Her mother’s reaction was less than enthusiastic. “Oh darling, perhaps take a step back…and think…I know we have always encouraged your dancing but two dancers? Who is going to make the money to fund your hobby?” Mala curled up in her bed, closing her eyes as her mother spoke. “Perhaps just think…what Papa and I want for you, we want the best for you, so what does that look like? And go from there. You can do this, I know you can.”
She soon moved to Orenda, made new friends, entered new relationships. She had told her father about Damien, made it known they were just friends but that she liked him, but their meeting for Visitor’s weekend hadn’t gone well, her father had not approved of all of the tattoos, so when Peter and Mala began to get close, Mala debated telling her father.
“So, darling, any new prospects?” Her father asked, sounding doubtful. Her thoughts drifted to Peter, so loving and so patient with her, to Morgan who was the sweetest girl in the whole world. The two of them had found their way into her heart and she couldn’t imagine her life without them. She stared at a picture Morgan had drawn for her of the three of them and wondered if this time her father would approve. She couldn’t imagine how he wouldn’t approve, but she couldn’t bare the heartache if he didn’t. “No, not yet…I’ve made a lot of really great friends, Papa. I am very happy right now.”
The lecture about staying focused was a lot easier to swallow than her Papa’s disappointment in her choices. She would hold onto Peter and Morgan for a little bit longer before sharing them with others. Even if it meant lying to her father, and any other family members who might take it upon themselves to check up on her.