Rich People Problems-Kwan 2017 (WWT)

“I’m not a visitor—I’m her son,” Philip shot back in annoyance.
Victoria fumed silently to herself. Yes, I know you are her son. Her only son. Mummy’s
made this abundantly clear to me my entire life. Her precious only son gets special bird’s
nest soup prepared for him every week all through his childhood while we girls only get
it on our birthdays. Her only son has all his clothes tailor-made on Savile Row while we
have to sew our own dresses. Her only son gets his own Jaguar convertible the minute he
returns from university while the girls have to share one miserable Morris Minor. Her
only son gets to marry whomever he wants no matter how common she is while every
man I ever bring home is deemed “unsuitable.” Her only son abandons her to live out his
Crocodile Dundee fantasies in Australia while I’m forced to stay here and take care of her
in her old age. Her precious only son.
When they arrived at her mother’s sitting room, Victoria started interrogating the
nurses while Philip and Eleanor went into the bedroom. Alix was sitting in the armchair
by her mother’s bedside when they entered. “Oh, Gor Gor, you’re here. Mummy’s just
fallen asleep. Her blood pressure was fluctuating too wildly, so they gave her a sedative.”
Philip looked down at his mother, suddenly shocked by her appearance. When he had
last seen her at Christmas, barely five weeks ago, she was still climbing on the ladder to
the top of her star-fruit trees. But now she seemed so small in the hospital bed, so lost in
the tangle of tubes and machines surrounding her. All his life, she had seemed so strong,
so invincible, he couldn’t even begin to fathom the possibility of her not being around.
“I think I’ll spend the night here with Mum,” he said in a quiet voice.
“There’s really no point. She’s going to sleep right through the night, and besides, her
lady’s maids take turns to be with her all night long in case she wakes up. The nurses also
come in to check on her every half hour. Come back tomorrow. She’s usually conscious
for a few hours in the morning,” Alix said.
“It doesn’t matter if she’s asleep. I’ll stay with her,” Philip tried to insist.
“Are you sure? You look like you could use a little sleep yourself—” Alix began.
Eleanor agreed. “Yah, lah, you didn’t sleep much on your flight, did you? You look so
run-down—I can see all the bags under your eyes. Let’s go home and come back early
tomorrow.”
Philip finally relented. “Okay. But Alix, can you do me a favor? If Mummy wakes up
anytime soon, will you tell her I was here?”
“Of course.” Alix smiled.
“And will you tell her Nicky was here too?” Philip pressed her.
Alix hesitated for a moment. She was concerned that any mention of Nicky would upset
her mother again, but she also felt that her mother needed to mend her rift with him. It
was the only way she would truly close her eyes in peace. “Let’s see. I’ll try my best, Gor
Gor.”