A Terrible Depth
Prologue, October 1997
Transcript below the cut
October, 1997
San Francisco, CA
JIP. I just can’t believe she’s actually getting married. It feels like we just heard about this guy.
GWANG. She’s pregnant. You know my parents are traditional, at least when it comes to that. And my father can be…persuasive. Besides, better for Fon to have to deal with her than us.
JIP. That’s your sister.
GWANG. Yes, and with the shit she’s put my parents through, she’s lucky we’ve held onto her this long. You’ve been around since she was diagnosed; you’ve seen it. Maew being my sister is the only reason I still care.
VAN. Gwang, put a smile on your face, would you? This is a day for celebration. Jip, are you alright? You seem a little under the weather.
JIP. Oh, yes, Maae. I’ll be fine. Just a little run down, but don’t worry–I’m ready to party. I didn’t fly all this way not to dance.
VAN. You better be. I can’t celebrate by myself, what with our husbands being so blah. Gwang, a drink already?
GWANG. Yes, Maae, a drink already. Now that you mention him, where is my father?
VAN. He’s with Maew already. Gwang, for goodness sake, put that drink down and tie your tie. We need to finish getting ready so we can arrive early.
GWANG. [knocking on bathroom door] Honey, are you almost ready? We need to get going, we don’t want to be late. My mother might bite our heads off.
JIP. [sitting on the toilet, holding a positive pregnancy test, trying to sound normal] Uh, yeah. I’ll be right out! [quietly, to self] Definitely not just run down.