I poke him with my chopstick. He does not look like he regrets telling such an offensive joke; in fact he looks very pleased with himself. Every time I take him somewhere nice he embarrasses me. I could never introduce him to my parents. They would think I was an idiot for dating him. They wouldn’t see how nice he is to me when we are on our own. It is only when we are in a group that he feels he has to impress people by acting like an idiot.
I finish the rest of my noodles. There is a selection of meat mixed in with the noodles – there is chicken and beef and prawns. The sauce covering the noodles is delicious. As soon as I’ve finished eating I want more but ordering two mains is not the kind of thing normal people do. I will have to be satisfied with the big slice of cake I’m going to order for dessert.
We go out for cocktails after the meal. I have a strawberry cocktail then I have a lemony cocktail. By the time we go home I am a little drunk. I hug my friends and tell them we must do it again next weekend. Someone says they heard of a nice Mexican place we could check out.
II
I glare at him over the top of my drink. Racism isn’t funny. Racism is never funny. Doesn’t he understand you can tell jokes about rainbows and rabbits?
I put my drink back on the table. I ask him if we can have a chat. He rolls his eyes at me. He says it was only a joke. He says I’m always getting worked up over silly things.
My dad looks amused by the whole thing. It doesn’t look like my mum even noticed – she is completely focused on the plate of food in front of her. I guess if nobody else minds I don’t mind either.
I finish my meal. The lamb is delicious, some of the best lamb I’ve ever eaten. The potatoes are pretty good but I swear I can make better ones myself. After we’ve eaten we put my parents in a taxi then we go for some drinks on our own in a nearby pub.
III
He tells me he’s sorry. I ask him if he’s met someone else. He dodges the question.
It’s always like this with men. You get close to them then they dump you. They don’t seem to care that you have a connection. They don’t seem to care that you’ve been together for years. They get bored of sleeping with you so they move on and start sleeping with someone else.
When I get home I cry. I’d already started thinking about marriage. My parents love him. If he’s good enough for my mum he’s good enough for me.
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Dominik Slusarczyk is an artist who makes everything from music to painting. He was educated at The University of Nottingham where he got a degree in biochemistry. His fiction has been published in various literary magazines including moonShine Review and SHiFT – A Journal of Literary Oddities. His fiction was selected in Fictionette Monthly Flash Fiction Contest.