Boyfriend For Rent

22. Awkward Dinner

       Birthdays were meant to be a joyful day. Full of laughter and happiness with both friends and family. To Lake, however, they were a reminder of how little her parents cared for her. The teenage girl had grown accustomed to spending the day which was meant to be filled with so much joy and love... alone.

       Each year after she learned to talk and walk was the same. Martina and the other cleaning staff would be the only ones in attendance of her birthday. Lake would receive the same chocolate cake baked by Martina, have the staff sing 'Happy Birthday' to her and that would be that. She planned for this year to be the same. Her parents gone off somewhere around the globe and Lake alone to celebrate her special day. So, she never expected for them to show up a few days before her birthday, but there they were, standing in front of her with two large suitcases in hand.

"What is going on here?" Lake's mother repeated her question.

Lake's mother was a beautiful woman in her early forties. She was nothing like her daughter. While Lake looked like she came out of a punk-rock concert, Mrs Romero looked like she came out of a Victoria's Secret latest runway show.

       "Mami (mom), papi (dad), what are you doing here?" Lake asked back as she climbed out of the bed.

       "We live here," her mother reminded.

       Lake bit the urge to roll her eyes. With how often her parents were gone, she had almost forgotten they actually did live in the house.

       "Now, who is this?" Mr Romero asked as his brown eyes gazed over at Min-Jun, who now stood behind Lake.

       "T-This is my boyfriend," Lake answered nervously.

       Mr and Mrs Romero held confused expressions.

       "What ever happened to Owen?" Mrs Romero asked. "He was a very nice boy."

       "And from a good family, too." Mr Romero added.

       Lake clenched her jaw tightly. "Yeah well, turns out he wasn't as nice as you thought. He cheated on me with Olivia."

       "Oh honey, we didn't know." Mrs Romero rushed over to hug her daughter, but Lake only tensed up under her touch.

       Of course you didn't, you've been gone for almost four months, Lake thought.

       "So, this is the new boyfriend then?" Mr Romero examined Min-Jun intensively. "What's your name kid?"

       "Min-Jun, sir. Min-Jun Park," the raven-haired boy replied as he extended his hand for Mr Romero to take, but the latter only gave him an acknowledging nod.

       Lake stared at her boyfriend with a sympathetic smile as he pulled his hand awkwardly.

       "Park? Hmm, are you part of the diamond mine Parks, or the real estate Parks?" Mrs Romero asked curiously.

       Lake could not believe that her parents were already checking out how much wealth Min-Jun could offer.

      "He's from the Park family that lives on the other side of town," Lake remarked in a sassy manner.

        "O-Other side of town?" Mrs Romero asked, hoping she had heard wrong. She knew that outside of their little rich part of town, lived those who survived on minimum wage.

       "So he has no money? No assets?" Mr Romero asked.

       "I don't, sir. But I can assure you, I love your daughter truly," Min-Jun affirmed as he brought Lake close to him.