After carefully placing her mother's belongings inside the brand new suitcase, Mimi Ann opened her wardrobe and carelessly threw her clothes on top of her mother's things. The middle aged half black, half white man sitting on the bed, Zach, turned to the young man standing at the doorway, "King, help your sister pack." He said.
Mimi Ann glared at the man then at his son who stood by the door staring at her as if she was worthless then scoffed, "Don't call me that Chinese guy's sister. It's weird."
Zach helplessly looked at the rebellious teenager and sighed before saying, "He is your biological brother. You're my daughter and that means he is your older brother."
Mimi Ann smirked coldly. She was brown skin, her hair grew in an afro even though she straightened it. The man was half white and half black yet he had a Chinese looking biological son. She found it ridiculous that she was part of that man. "Aren't you even a little bit ashamed to say that? We just met yesterday at my mom's burial and you just threatened me with your lawyers." She rolled her eyes, "Now you're telling your son to help me pack so that I can move to another city. You are so annoyingly hypocritical."
"I wasn't going to help you with those rags anyway." Said King not moving from the doorway, "Dad is doing this for you anyway and you must be thanking him."
"For what? Showing up seventeen years after my birth? Forcing me to leave my home and taking me to a city I don't even know? My mom just died for God's sake!"
"You can just blame yourself for being a minor." Said King frowning upon seeing the worn out clothes that Mimi Ann was throwing in her bag.
The middle aged man also seemed to notice and then asked, "Didn't your mother buy you clothes?" he asked curiously, "She doesn't seem like the kind of person that could not afford to buy you clothes."
"She told me that you are a designer of clothes and shoes and since then I just hate dressing up." She scoffed, "My mom was too nice and naïve. She said you weren't bad…" she rolled her eyes, "But I'm not as naïve. I know you are bad and I really don't like you."
"Your mom was a good person." Said the middle aged man and King scoffed but didn't say anything. While Zach seemed torn between the two children he avoided saying anything to set either of them off.
"I know mama was nice which is why I'm convinced that you are the bad one." She pointed out bitterly.
King frowned, "Dad I don't think she even needs to pack all those rags. And you, don't you know how to talk to elders? Why are you so spoilt?"
"I'm not spoilt." She said coldly, "You'd be more helpful if you had been trying to convince that old man to take you back without me. I don't need anyone's help. I'm already seventeen. I can take care of myself."
Zach sighed helplessly, "Just pack. I'll buy you new clothes after we land in China."
"China?" she froze, "We are going to China?"
King smirked and was the one to answer, "Yes, that's where we live."
Mimi Ann's eyes widened, "But you didn't tell me! You made it sound like we are just moving to another city."
"I'm sorry." The old man said helplessly and directed his gaze at his son, "King, please help her."
The moment he tried to touch her things she pushed him away then turned to Zach, "Mr James, you made it sound as if you had my best interest at heart and you… you are taking me so far away. My mom was just buried yesterday how can I just leave?"
"It was your mother who called me right before she passed away." He said softly, "I can't fail her. She wanted me to take you away as soon as possible."
"Why would she do that? She hated you!" she tried and dropped to her knees, "I don't want to go so far away. Just ignore me. Mom is dead anyway and she won't know even if you leave me here."
"I can't do that." He gestured for King and he closed the bag and carried it outside. Mimi Ann knew there was no stopping the situation. There was no way she was going to be allowed to stay here at all after her mother died and she would never win even if she tried to fight him. He was rich and famous and she was just herself.
*
The city, Mimi Ann even hated the word, whoever came up with that word or that place and now she would be moving to a new house in a city located in China. She was intimidated by the idea of living with people who looked different and spoke a different language. She always hated the city, the city language and everything about it because she heard from her mother that her father loved the place. She wished he had never found her or come to her mother's funeral. She looked nothing like him to make it worse and his son looked Chinese. She would never be able to wrap her head around the new family and the moving to another country.
It didn't take long and they took a private plane and left just like that. As if the farm never happened the way Zach seemed to want.
What could she do? No matter how much she tried he was held bend on leaving for China. Even though she was very comfortable in her old torn clothes, she still felt out of place in her father's luxurious private plane but still refused to change clothes when he suggested that she buy new clothes. When they got to China it was late and they slept at the hotel. The following morning King drove to school and before he left, Zach came to her room but she was still lying in bed.
"Get up, I have to go to a meeting." He said.
Mimi Ann didn't even open her eyes, "So? Just go."
"You can come with me." He suggested. "It's Q's new branch about five kilometers from here."
"No. Isn't this Q hotel? It's your hotel right?"
"Yea."
"I'll just stay here." She said calmly.
The middle aged man frowned, "Do you want to go home?"
"No."
"Do you want to go to school?"
"No, I said I'll just stay here." She said impatiently then covered her head with the quilt to ignore him.
"You can choose one from the options I gave you. You can't stay here." He said, "How about you go to school today? It's school opening." He suggested and she rolled her eyes.
"Whatever."