"Rudy, come downstairs," Mom yells from downstairs.
"Coming."
I place all of my toys back in my toy rack and rush downstairs. When the smell of chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven hits my nose, I run to the kitchen and try to steal one but my mom smacks my hand and gives me a disapproving look.
I huff.
"These cookies are for the guests. Come, let's meet them. Remember what I have taught you. Greet everyone with a smile, tell them your name and touch the elders' feet as a sign of respect. Got it?" she says, guiding me out of the room and away from the delicious cookies.
My cookies!
I stick my tongue out at her and run away.
"Rudy," Mom says sternly. I laugh and head straight, without looking left or right when I run smack into a wall.
Why does the wall have hands?
I'm pulled into the air and into my father's arms. I smile sheepishly, "Dada."
"Have you been troubling Mumma again?" Dad asks, ruffling my hair.
"No dada. I just wanted a cookie." I pout.
"There you are. What are you doing here? Go and sit with the guests. I have to do everything in this house," she says, taking me from dad's arms and setting me down.
"Honey, they were asking for you. So I just got up to tell you that. Not my fault this little prince here is giving you so much trouble," he mutters and I giggle.
Dada always apologises to Mumma even when he is not wrong. She has him wrapped around her pinky.
"Whatever. Now go. I'll bring the cookies to serve them," she says, shooing us away. I hold Dad's hand and go to the living room.
A man, approximately the same age as my father is seated on the sofa. A woman, probably his wife sits next to him. A girl, younger than me, is sitting on her lap, holding a Barbie doll in her hands. They both give me a warm smile but my eyes are drawn to the girl sitting on the left side of the man. She's wearing a pink coloured frock which has little teddy bears printed on it and her hair is tied in pigtails.
I would call her as beautiful as a princess but her facial features are set in a scowl and she's currently glaring daggers at me.
I smile at her nervously and look away only to gaze at her again. She's going to be my princess.
Dada says one day I'll meet a girl who I will love as much as he loves Mumma. Is she that girl?
I walk up to the man, bend down and touch his feet. He smiles at me and ruffles my hair. I bend down again and touch the woman's feet but the girl on her lap hits my head with her doll and giggles. I frown at her and introduce myself.
"Hello. I'm Rudy. What's your name?"
She just giggles and hits my head again with her doll. Her mother takes the toy from her hand and says, "She's Emily. How old are you Rudy?"
I grin and say, "I'm a big boy now. I'll be eight years old in a month."
She smiles and says, "Aww, yes, you're a big boy now. Sasha is seven years old too. Sasha, say hi to Rudy."
Sasha looks at me and scoffs. Her father whispers something in her ear that makes her mumble, "Hi."
"I'm five," Emily says and giggles, lifting her hand and showing five tiny fingers.
Why does she giggle so much? Kids, I tell you!
I go and sit next to Sasha on the couch and pull one of her pigtails. She clenches her fist but doesn't hit me.
Mumma enters the room with a tray full of cookies. I look at dad for permission if I can have one and when he shakes his head a little, I sigh.
"Do you want to see my toys?" I pull Sasha's pigtail again and ask her. She glares at me but says yes.
"Mumma, can we go and play in my room?"
She pauses mid-conversation with Sasha's mother to say, "Ah, sure."
"I want to come too," Emily says and starts crying. Tears course down her cheeks and her chin trembles.
"Sure, come with us."
She smiles brightly and gets up from her mother's lap, taking her barbie doll along.
I lead them out of the living room, up the staircase to my room which is the first one in the hallway.
Emily jumps on my bed and giggles while Sasha sits on my desk chair, glancing around my room and wrinkling her nose.
Mom had cleaned my room this morning but I made it untidy when I couldn't find my Beyblade. My school books are thrown on the floor and some of the clothes from the closet are spread out on the bed.
I open my toy rack and ask them, "What do you want to play?"
I have action cards, Beyblades, monopoly, snakes and ladders, smurf guns, ludo, business, twister and Power Ranger figures.
"Do you have a dollhouse? I'll be the main princess," Emily asks, smiling widely.
"Why do you want to be a princess? Princesses are weak and dumb. If you want to be someone, be an effing queen." Sasha rolls her eyes at her sister.
Emily hits Sasha on her head and runs out of the room, yelling, "Mommy, Sasha said a bad word."
I grin at her. "What do you want to play, Boobear?"
She glares at me. "Don't call me that." She gets up and glances at my toys. "You have a lot of toys. Who bought you these?" she asks, picking up my smurf gun and pointing it at my face.
"Mumma did," I say and take out another gun and point it at her pretty face too.
She smiles sadly and says, "You're so lucky you have a mom."
I shoot her with my gun on her leg and grin when it hits her. "Everyone does, silly."
"I don't."