Mom and Dad Still Hate Each Other (✅)

Chapter One

The bright lights, the smell of the popcorn, the beautiful Oriental music...

All of these things come to me at once as I step out of the car and see the New Asian Circus!

For the past ten years, the New Asian Circus has been a celebration of the joining of the Asian, African, and European countries into what we call New Asia today. The circus has been an accumulation of the different cultures and lifestyles of the various people who've come together as a whole to make New Asia what it is now.

At least, that's what I heard. Despite the show traveling through the Islands and the Americas in the course of two years, I have never once seen it in person until now.

Mom, Dad, and I walk down the path towards the huge tent. I'm shaking with excitement and barely able to contain myself, a huge contrast to my parents' composed walks. The tension between them was thick in the car ride over here and even with the ever growing excitement within me, I can sense the hostility between them.

Luckily, they keep their fists (and feet) of fury to themselves instead of flying at each other. A fact that I'm very grateful for as we take our seats among the large throng of people eagerly anticipating the show.

"Wow, this is amazing!" I remark. I can feel the excitement start to bubble up in my chest like freshly popped popcorn.

"Well, it does come from Leefside, which is known for being the entertainment capital of the world," Dad says proudly with a smug grin.

"Too bad Japan doesn't know the first thing about entertainment," Mom scoffs. "Their success was heavily influenced by China."

I knew it would only be a matter of time before either Mom or Dad shot a backhanded comment at the other. That's how it starts... That's how it always starts.

They stare at each other with all too familiar glares. Glares that are usually followed by sharping objects flying through the air, rapid Mantis claws, and bone crushing roundhouse kicks, but nobody moved.

Partially out of wanting to see the show and also not wanting to see hundreds of casualties, I desperately try to distract them.

"S-So if New Asia decided to make a circus celebrating the merging of China with other countries, why didn't Montoya celebrate when Australia merged with the leftover islands of Asia? Or why didn't North America and South America celebrate when they merged into the Americas?"

Mom and Dad didn't break eye contact as they spoke.

"Difference in mindset," Dad states, the usual man of few words and not a great teacher.

"Montoya didn't care when it's culture merged. It was a dump before and it's an even larger dump now. The Americas were on a war path even when they were known as the United States, so after the Great War they had no choice but to accept South America to keep themselves from falling. Of course they were proud and acted like it was their intention all along. The only new nation that did care was China!" Mom elaborates.

"And Japan!" Dad argues, but Mom continues.

"China...and Japan, I guess," she scoffs, "held a majority of the population that didn't wish to merge and as a result the joining wasn't as seamless as with the other nations of the world. There was... resistance and so it was needed to make the majority see that merging was something good. Something to celebrate with a circus."

"That's exactly what I said," Dad huffs.

I can see that they were moments away from being at each other's throats.

"How did they resist?" I persist, feeling as if I'm trying to persuade a toddler not to throw a tantrum.

However, the moment I ask, the anger immediately falls from the faces just in time for the lights to flash, signaling the beginning of the show.

I'm concerned about why my question caught them off guard, but the excitement hits me so hard that my eyes are immediately glued to the performance.