The Joy Luck Club Page #3

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What's wrong?

Tell me quick!

It's so scary.

It's too terrible to say.

I had a bad dream.

Our ancestors came to me!

So angry!

They told me if Tyan-yu stays...

in this marriage...

he will die.

What's this bullshit?

What a stupid girl

to have bad dreams!

The ancestors said...

if the matter is

not settled immediately...

they will begin...

the cycle of destruction!

There are three signs, he said.

First, he has drawn a spot

on Tyan-yu's back.

And this spot will eat away

Tyan-yu's flesh.

Just as it ate away

our ancestor's face.

The same mole I had seen

during all those nights...

of sleeping just like

brother and sister.

Next, our ancestor

touched my mouth.

Our ancestor said...

if I don't leave this marriage...

all my teeth will fall out.

But how could I leave

this family I love so much?

I live and die

for this family.

The open spot in my mouth...

where a rotted tooth

fell out four years ago.

Our ancestor also said

this girl here...

is Tyan-yu's

true spiritual wife...

already growing his son!

It's true!

To prove it our ancestor

planted the seed in her womb.

Already ripe in one day.

Ah Ping!

Come over here!

Come over here!

If you don't believe me,

ask the matchmaker.

I told them the matchmaker

had made the wrong match...

on purpose,

just for money.

Matchmaker, how could you?

How could you?

Well...

mistakes happen in Heaven.

The hell with this!

Get out!

All of you!

Huang Tai Tai

got her grandson.

The servant girl

got her marriage.

I got a rail ticket to Shanghai.

So, you see, I still kept

my promise to my mother.

But years later, things

were somewhat different...

with my daughter

Waverly's wedding.

- Ma, it's me.

- Oh, Waverly-a.

- You already at the beauty parlor?

- No.

- No?

- No, I'm-- I have a headache.

Headache?

You have a headache?

So you cannot keep

your promise to your mother?

- Ma!

- No, don't come.

Why should I want you to come...

when all you're telling me

you don't want to come?

- Ma, that's not what I said!

- What's wrong with the way I look now?

I just go to wedding

with old hair.

Sh*t!

She always does this!

My mom always does this.

Whatever I say,

whatever I do...

whatever I think...

she always has

the perfect countermove.

As if she had been

the chess champion.

Even at that age,

I knew I had an amazing gift:

this power,

this belief in myself...

to be better than anyone else.

If someone was bigger than me,

older than me, it didn't matter.

And if they were mean,

I could make'em sorry.

Checkmate.

Congratulations.

She was--

It was the only part

of my life, to this day...

where I trusted myself

completely.

- Very good.

- Thank you.

- Good work.

- Thank you.

- You did good.

- I was safe there.

- Very nice job.

- We've been very lucky.

- I still cry remembering that.

- Thank you.

- You not see Life magazine?

- No.

I told my daughter, "Use your

horses to run over the enemy."

- One fine day

- She won very quickly this way.

- Oh, good.

- You'll look at me

- Bye-bye.

- Bye-bye.

- Say bye-bye.

- And you will know

- Our love was meant to be

- Bye.

- Bye.

- One fine day

- Hi.

- You're gonna want me for your girl

- Ah, Mrs. Chew!

Oh, you know my daughter,

Waverly Jong, chess champion?

- The arms I long for will open wide

- Smart girl! Bye.

- Thank you. Bye-bye.

- And you'll be proud to have me

I wish you wouldn't do that,

telling everyone I'm your daughter.

- What you mean? You so ashamed

to be with your mother?

- One fine day

- You're gonna want me for your girl

- It's not that.

It's just that it's so...

- embarrassing, that's all.

- What? Embarrassed you be my daughter?

- I'll keep waiting and some day, darling

- That's not what I said.

- Then what you say? Look at me!

- You'll come to me

- When you want to settle down

- Look at me!

- Oh, one fine day

- Why do you have to use me to show off?

- We'll meet once more

- If you want to show off...

- And then you'll want the love

- then why don't you learn to play chess?

You threw away before

One fine day

You're gonna want me

for your girl

Waverly! Waverly!

You come back!

About time.

Boy, are you in trouble.

Sit down. Eat.

This girl not have

concerning for us.

We not concerning

this girl.

I'm never gonna

play chess again!

You can't make me!

You can torture me

all you want...

I still won't.

Did you hear what I said?

For months I kept expecting Ma

to beg me to play chess again...

but she never mentioned it,

as if I had never played at all.

Guess what? I've decided

to play chess again.

You think it is so easy.

One day quit,

next day play.

Everything for you

is this way.

So smart, so easy, so fast.

Not so easy anymore.

What she said,

it was like a curse.

This power I had,

this belief in myself...

I could actually

feel it draining away.

I could feel myself

becoming so ordinary.

All the secrets I once saw...

I couldn't

see them anymore.

All I could see was--

were my mistakes,

my weaknesses.

The best part of me just...

- Check.

- disappeared.

But I can't put it all

on my mother.

I did it to myself.

I never played chess again.

She needs a cut

and a perm, Trevor.

And this color of hers, it's from that

cheap black dye she's been using at home.

God forbid she'd pay to have

anything professionally done.

Why I should pay?

What for?

Why I should pay 90 dollar?

To act like you? So important.

Go to fancy barber

with torn-up jeans.

Darlene, we need

a shampoo here.

I mean, I even married

a Chinese guy to please her.

He was gorgeous.

He gave her a granddaughter.

But was she satisfied?

When we got divorced, she got

all upset like it was my fault.

I just want to show you

something. It's upstairs.

- Watch out for Shoshana's toys.

- And when I finally started dating again...

when I tried to hint

to her about Rich...

that we were

living together--

How could she not notice?

This was not going to go away,

even with her silent treatment.

This is what

I wanted to show you.

You know Rich,

the guy I told you about?

I don't know why he got it for me.

It's really never cold enough to wear.

You wanna try it?

This not so good.

Only leftover strips.

See? Fur too short.

No long hairs.

How can you

criticize a gift?

He gave this to me

with all his heart.

That's why I told you.

Not so good.

I wasn't going to let her

get away with it this time...

making me feel bad about Rich,

the love of my life...

who treated me

like I was perfect.

Well, aren't you going

to say anything else?

What I should say?

About the apartment,

about this!

And this!

Or this!

All of this!

We're here!

Where is everybody?

The next week I brought Rich to Mom's

birthday dinner, sort of a surprise present.

I figured she was going to have

to accept Rich, like it or not.

- Oh, Rich, this is my father.

- How ya doin'?

- Happy birthday, Mom.

- How are you?

- I'm good, thank you.

And, Ma, this is Rich.

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