Rich People Problems-Kwan 2017 (WWT)

Nick unfastened the metal clasp on the blue embossed leather box and flipped open the
lid. Inside was an assortment of objects and curiosities. Vintage tortoiseshell combs and
coins of varying currencies mixed in with letters and faded old photographs. He came
upon a small stack wrapped with a piece of ribbon and realized that it was every picture
he had ever sent to her from his boarding-school days in England. At the bottom of the
box were several jewelry pouches, the kind made of padded silk that one saw in
Chinatown trinket shops all over the world. He found a small yellow pouch and returned
to his grandmother’s bedside.
Su Yi unzipped the pouch, took out a pair of earrings, and placed them in the palm of
Nick’s hand. “I want you to have these. For your wife.”
Nick felt a lump in his throat as he realized the enormous significance of her gift. His
grandmother was acknowledging Rachel as his wife for the very first time. He glanced at
the earrings in his palm. They were simple pearl studs set on old-fashioned gold posts,
but the luminosity of each pearl was stunning—they seemed to glow from within. “Thank
you, Ah Ma. I know Rachel will love these.”
Su Yi looked her grandson in the eye. “My father gave these to me when I escaped
Singapore before the war, when the Japanese soldiers had finally reached Johor and we
knew all was lost. They are very special. Please look after them carefully.”
“We will cherish them, Ah Ma.”
“Now, I think it’s time for my morning pills. Will you call Madri and Patravadee in?”
—
In the breakfast room, Ah Ching had set up a cooking station at the end of the long dining
table. Rather unusually, she eschewed the use of a crepe pan to make her beloved recipe.
Instead, she cooked them on her trusty wok, expertly tilting and twisting the large black
wok to create the perfect round thin pancakes.
Eddie had woken up Fiona and the kids for this special treat, and his mother, Victoria,
Catherine, and Taksin were assembled in the room as well, eagerly awaiting their custommade
crepes.
“Can I have mine with some ham and cheese?” Taksin asked. “I prefer savory ones to
sweet ones, especially in the morning.”
“Uncle Taksin, you’re missing out if you don’t try the fabulous sauce that Ah Ching
makes,” Eddie said.
“I want mine with ice cream,” young Augustine said.
“Augie, you will eat them exactly as I instruct you to!” Eddie barked at his son.
Catherine exchanged glances with Alix, who simply rolled her eyes and shook her head.
As the family began tucking into the first round of crepes, Astrid entered the dining
room with Adam, Piya, and Professor Oon.
“What are you doing here?” Eddie said, startled by his cousin’s sudden appearance at
the house. He thought she had been ordered to stay away by her parents since the India