The Message

"Charles, this is Jenny. I got your email about the Christmas activities you've got planned for Lily. No, I will not be joining you. Actually, you will have to cancel them all. Lily will be spending Christmas with me and my mother this year. I'm sure you wouldn't want to deprive her of her time with me. We need to make up for lost time after all. I'll call you to sort out the details. Have fun on your little trip. We had a great time in Vegas six years ago. Maybe you'll manage to top it someday!"

Mr. Wu stared at the phone in utter disbelief.

"She... How could she? I told her that I'd booked tickets for Disney on Ice! They are non-refundable!"

"How did she know about the trip to Vegas?" Sun Mei asked. "Did you tell her?"

"No." Mr. Wu shook his head. "Lily must have told her friends at school. Jenny still talks to some of the mothers."

"Not Karen?"

"Mostly Karen."

"Well…" Sun Mei tried to look on the bright side of this development. "At least Lily will see her grandmother."

To her great surprise, Mr. Wu snorted.

"What?" Sun Mei asked.

"You do realize that you are talking about the woman who raised Jenny?" he said.

"Parents and kids aren't always alike."

"These two are!" Vivian cut in, giving her own input on the situation. "The one time I met that woman was the only time I felt sorry for Jenny. She sure must have had a rough childhood."

"Then why is she giving Lily one?" Mr. Wu asked angrily.

"Because she can't afford a good shrink?" Vivian suggested.

"Are you going to let Lily go?" Sun Mei asked Mr. Wu before they got too carried away.

"Of course I am. I cannot be the bad guy in this scenario. It's Christmas and her mom wants to spend time with her. I would be really selfish if I said no."

"You are not selfish," Sun Mei told him. "You are anything but selfish."

Vivian shot her a strange look.

"What am I going to do about the tickets?" Mr. wondered aloud.

"How many did you get?" Vivian asked.

Mr. Wu shrugged slowly. "Three. I thought that Sun Mei might want to come."

"Well, there's three of them," said Sun Mei. "Lily, her mom, and her grandmother. You could be the bigger person and give them the tickets."

"Or…" Vivian raised her finger. "You could sell them on the black market."

Mr. Wu shook his head. "I'm not giving them the tickets. If Jenny wants to show Lily a good time, she can do it at her own expense. I'm not going to foot the bill. I'm going to be selfish and keep the tickets for myself."

"There's only one of you," Vivian told him.

"I know. I could take the two of you if you wanted to," Mr. Wu suggested.

Vivian's eyebrows shot up. "You are asking us both out on a date?" she asked incredulously.

"What? No! Vivian!" Mr. Wu turned red from embarrassment.

Meanwhile, Vivian smiled mischievously. "If only you could see your face right now!"